Which describes a floating file?

• A. A file never checked out
• B. A file checked out by a clerk and returned
• C. A file checked out by a clerk and given to the prosecutor without being checked back in
• D. A file stored off-site

Answer: (C)

A floating file is a file that is out of the normal filing system because someone has it but hasn’t checked it back in. When a clerk checks out a file and gives it to the prosecutor without checking it back in, the file leaves its designated place and can’t be accounted for in the usual tracking. It’s effectively “in transit” within the workflow and not in the file room, which creates confusion about its location and status. The other scenarios keep the file either in the system (never checked out), back in the system (returned after use), or simply stored off-site with proper tracking, so they don’t produce the untracked, out-of-system condition that defines a floating file.