Family Court Evidence Index Template: Free Download and How to Fill It In

You have evidence everywhere: screenshots on your phone, emails in two accounts, school records in a folder, photos you took at exchanges. You know it’s all there, but when someone asks “what do you have that shows that?” you can’t find it fast. A family court evidence index template fixes that with one simple table: every item, one row, all in one place.

This page gives you a free evidence index template in Word, Excel and PDF, explains what goes in each column, shows a filled-in example, and covers how to keep the index useful from the first screenshot to the day of your hearing. It also explains how the index differs from the exhibit list your court may ask for, since people often mix the two up.

What is a family court evidence index?

It’s your master list of every piece of evidence in your case, with enough detail to find each item, know why it matters and know who can vouch for it. It’s a private working document, not usually something you file.

When the hearing approaches, you build the exhibit list from the index, choosing the strongest items. Our guide to making an exhibit list for family court covers that step, and how to organize evidence for family court shows where the index fits in the bigger process.

Download the free family court evidence index template

The template is one table with seven columns and a sample row. Pick the format that fits how you work: Excel if you’ll sort and filter, Word for a clean printout, PDF if you prefer to write by hand. It also works as a simple evidence list template for court, the kind you can hand to a lawyer or keep in your binder.

How do you fill in the evidence index template, column by column?

One row per item, every column filled, in plain and neutral words. Here’s what goes in each column.

• Exhibit #: leave it blank or use a temporary number until your exhibit set is final, then fill in the number your court’s system calls for. Renumbering a finished list is painful.
• Description: what the item is, the date range and the page count, written so a stranger would understand it. “Text messages with co-parent about weekend pickups, 12 pages,” not “Texts proving he’s always late.”
• Date(s): when the thing happened, not when you saved or printed it. For a thread, give the first and last date.
• Source: where the item came from, such as “my phone, Messages export,” “school portal” or “pediatrician’s office, requested in writing.”
• Issue it supports: a short label from your list of issues, such as exchanges, school, medical or communication. Keep the labels consistent so you can filter by them.
• Who can identify it: the person who can testify that it is what you say it is, usually you, or a records custodian for official records.
• Original kept where: the phone, the email account, a backup drive, a paper folder. If anyone questions a copy, you need to know exactly where the original is.

What does a filled-in evidence index look like?

Short, consistent and boring, which is exactly what you want. Here’s an example of four rows.

Notice what’s missing: adjectives, conclusions and anything about the other parent’s character. The index describes; your testimony explains.

The most common mistakes are easy to avoid once you know them:

• Using the save date instead of the event date, which scrambles the order of everything.
• Lumping many items into one row, like “all the texts,” so nothing can be found or cited.
• Leaving “original kept where” blank, then not being able to produce the original when a copy is questioned.
• Inventing new issue labels every week, so filtering stops working.
• Letting it fall behind, then trying to rebuild months of entries the night before a deadline.

How do you keep the index useful as your case grows?

Add items the day you collect them, sort by date and filter by issue regularly, and save dated versions. An index that’s two months behind is only slightly better than none.

• Add a row every time you save something, even if you’re not sure you’ll use it
• Sort by date to see the story in order and to catch duplicates
• Filter by issue to see which points have strong support and which rest only on your word
• Save a dated copy each week, such as “Evidence index 2026-10-07”
• Keep the index next to your timeline; our custody case timeline template uses matching columns

Filtering by issue is where the index pays off. If one issue has fifteen supporting items and another has none, you know where to focus before the hearing, not during it.

Setting up the Excel version so it sorts and filters

A few one-time settings make the spreadsheet version much easier to work with, in Excel or in Google Sheets.

1. Freeze the header row (in Excel, View, then Freeze Panes, then Freeze Top Row) so column names stay visible as you scroll.
2. Turn on filters (Data, then Filter) so each column gets a drop-down for sorting and filtering.
3. Enter dates as real dates, not text like “early March,” so sorting by date actually works. Put uncertain dates in the description instead.
4. Make the issue column a drop-down (Data, then Data Validation, then List) using your issue labels, so every row uses the same spelling.

How do you use the index at the hearing and with a lawyer?

At the hearing, your own printed index is your map. Mark which exhibits you offered and which were admitted, and use it to find anything the judge or the other side asks about.

With a lawyer, the index is often the most useful thing you can bring, because it shows what exists and where without anyone sorting a box of paper. Our guide to preparing an attorney handoff packet shows how the index fits with your timeline and summaries. If you’re unsure what your court requires you to exchange or file, a licensed attorney where you live can tell you.

Building the index by hand vs. letting Evidence Helper generate it

The template works, and for a small case it may be all you need. But typing an index by hand means retyping descriptions you already wrote, re-sorting every time you add something, and renumbering when your exhibit set changes. With Evidence Helper, you upload your screenshots, photos and documents (originals preserved untouched), set the date each item happened, tag it, set a priority and map it to the issues in your case. The Evidence Index is generated from that, along with a one-click court-ready PDF that is exhibit-numbered, case-captioned and SHA-256-hashed.

Every account starts with a 14-day free trial of everything, no credit card. After the trial, the free tier keeps one case and 10 evidence items with a watermarked export.

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