Not really. Most of what is only available on PACER is nuts and bolt lawyering. Opinions and orders are available for free from government sources. Also, impor

Not really. Most of what is only available on PACER is nuts and bolt lawyering. Opinions and orders are available for free from government sources. Also, important motions and other filings are usually made available too. It costs money to run PACER, so fees are required, like for many government services. The issue here is that the collected fees were higher than needed, providing a slush fund that did not require congressional appropriation. Similarly, the USPTO is self-funded by user fees that are over priced. The excess fees provide a slush fund for congress.