Here's the cover story of the September INTERNET LAWYER
(http://www.internetlawyer.com/tillive.htm): E-filing Gets Real. It may
give you some perspective on this issue.
Joshua D. Blackman
Editor
THE INTERNET LAWYER
http://www.internetlawyer.com
josh@internetlawyer.com
718.499.6030
718.499.6039 fax
123 Seventh Avenue
Suite 137
Brooklyn, NY 11215
E-Filing Gets Real
By Nicholas C. Zales
Electronic filing is no longer a dream. Sending lawsuits, motions,
decisions and orders via email is a reality on the verge of revolutionizing
how lawyers and courts interact. E-filing will also help courts manage the
mountains of paper filings and retained records.
Wiring Colorado
In the most aggressive plan to date, the State of Colorado announced
in August 1999 that it had entered into an agreement with Texas-based
Justice Link to provide for electronic lawsuit filing throughout the state
(http://www.courts.state.co.us/ct-index.htm). The Colorado plan is to phase
the system into three counties in November, and thereafter expand the system
county by county until the entire state is part of an integrated Internet
filing system. According to the Colorado Judicial Department, the plan is
to be fully implemented in every county district court by December 2000.
The Colorado system will be voluntary. To access the e-file system,
attorneys will need to register with Justice Link, which will act as an
intermediary between lawyers and the court system.
The plan does not call for the use of proprietary software. All an attorney
will need is any major word processing program, an Internet connection and
Web browser version 3.x or higher. E-filings will be converted to PDF
format, processed and transferred to the court system. There, a court clerk
will review the filing, chose to accept or reject it, and the system will
automatically assign a case number and judge to the lawsuit.
On the other side of the bar, judges will be able to view case filings over
the Internet, and issue decisions and orders to litigants by email. In its
initial stages, attorneys will pay $.10 per page for e-filings. This will
cover the cost of implementing this unprecedented statewide system.
In at least the first year of operation, the court will still make paper
copies of all e-filings, in part, because the issues surrounding public
access have yet to be resolved. The state is considering making the files
available to the public over the Internet for free. Located in each county
courthouse will be computer terminals where anyone can access the e-filings
without charge. The per-page e-filing fee is supposed to cover the costs of
implementing and running this statewide system. Further information on the
Colorado plan is located at the Court’s web site in PDF format.
Non-Proprietary Approach
At the county level, the Virginia Fairfax County Circuit Court’s
“Experimental Electronic Filing Project” is one of the leading e-filing
programs in the U.S. It is slated to move off the drawing board and into
the pilot project stage in September 1999 once it receives approval from the
State Supreme Court.
The Fairfax County system is the result of one and a half years of tireless
work by attorneys committed to connecting the court system to the Internet.
A demonstration model of the Fairfax e-filing system is available at their
Web page, which also has a comprehensive list of world–wide links to
e-filing programs in other court systems, articles, organizations and
commercial providers of e-filing systems. The Fairfax County site is
located at: http://www.nelsonwolfe.com/e-file/.
This site is a must-see for lawyers who wish to keep current with existing
programs in certain federal courts and the e-filing programs in other states
and counties as they move from development to full implementation.
One of the fundamental principles behind the Fairfax County system
is that proprietary software ought not be required for Internet access to
filings. All an attorney will need to use the Fairfax system is a Web
browser, word processor, Internet connection and Adobe Acrobat for
converting files to PDF format for filing. A link to Adobe’s site is
provided.
While Acrobat is not free [Editor’s Note: the Acrobat PDF writer is not
free, but the Acrobat viewer is free], it will probably become a standard
item and drop in price as e-filing grows. Fairfax County’s sophisticated
system will most likely become a model for other counties through the
nation. It is well thought out and should in practice be very easy to use.
User-Friendliness is Key
E-filing is a symbiotic relationship, which will benefit litigants and court
systems alike. In large cities, courts are overwhelmed with personnel and
storage expenses for the millions of documents filed and saved by clerk’s
offices. In the same way attorneys no longer need large offices and rooms
for case law, courts will store data electronically and thereby reduce the
need for space and personnel to care for and provide public access to court
files. The ability to store and access filings, motions, decisions and
orders in electronic format should allow courts to spend money on more
pressing needs and concerns than mere storage space.
While the cost benefit to litigants remains to be seen, the fiscal impact on
courts should be substantial and a great benefit to all concerned. The
question is not whether these e-filing systems will work. They are clearly
the future of our court systems. The key to the implementation and use of
these systems will be to make them as user friendly as possible.
No one system will fit every county or state, as various state and county
customs, practices and rules will dictate some flexibility and require
approval by State Supreme Courts. Nevertheless, e-filing is here to stay.
How attorneys adapt to it and whether the public accepts it will depend on
court officials and attorneys working together to make the systems
user-friendly. But once e-filing is in place, paper filings and trips to
the courthouse will be as outdated as the horse-and-buggy.
-----------------------------
Nicholas C. Zales, Esq. practices law in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (414-224-8411,
REPLY TO:
Has anyone been involved in a case that required electronic filing. I have
a
patron involved in this who would like some guidance as to what he needs to
accomplish this. Thanks.
George W. Baker
Trumbull Cty Law Library
Warren, OH 44481
(330) 675-2525
GBaker9916@aol.com
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Wed Nov 14 2007 - 20:50:12 PST