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Electronic Case Filing and Public Record Retrieval

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Monday, January 31, 2005

RFID technology is useful in court too
"Radio-frequency identification has caught the attention of the world's biggest retailers for tracking goods as they move through supply chains. But the DeKalb County Juvenile Court in Georgia believes RFID can be put to use on a smaller scale, to keep tabs on the 12,000 manila file folders on more than 9,000 children processed through the court system each year."
Laurie Sullivan, InformationWeek, Jan 31

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posted by Paul M. Bush, CEO of Courtport, LLC at 11:06 AM

Saturday, January 29, 2005

New York: CM/ECF overview with a focus on Southern Bankruptcy Court
Good NYLJ article by Lisa Pulitzer describing CM/ECF and some experiences with using it. The Southern Bankruptcy court was one of the first courts to successfully use CM/ECF on a large scale. Note: I have personally used NY State's FBEM system - they have a LONG way to go. It's still too problematic to even be compared to the federal system.

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

Mississippi: LexisNexis left out in the cold (for now) regarding Hinds County ECF
Expressing the need for a uniform statewide system, the state Supreme Court has denied a rule change to allow Hinds County to implement its own electronic filing system for civil court cases.

Judges and other Hinds County officials have been working with Dayton, Ohio-based LexisNexis to provide online filing and review of civil cases in circuit and county courts.The state Supreme Court blocked the proposal in an order filed last week.

"It is not our intent or prerogative to preclude any court district from pursuing, on an individual basis, a system of electronic filing," Chief Justice Jim Smith wrote.

"However, to the extent any such system requires amendments to rules and procedures governed by this court and/or statutory enactments, such system will require extensive study and coordination prior to approval of the court and ultimate implementation."

Ohio: A Tussle Over Ohio Court Records
This National Law Journal article descibes yet another example of a disagreement regarding what should be available online to the public.

"An Ohio controversy that pits a newspaper editor against a judge who wants to keep her divorce proceedings out of the public eye illustrates a national tug of war over the openness of court records. In an extra twist, the judge, Paulette Lilly, sits on the Lorain County Domestic Relations Court, and Douglas Clifton, editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, both serve on the privacy subcommittee of the Supreme Court of Ohio Advisory Committee on Technology and the Courts."

Tuesday, January 25, 2005

New Jersey: Burlington Special Civil Part of the Superior Court Law Division to use ECF
Lawyers will no longer have to visit the courthouse in Burlington County to file lawsuits for nonpayment of small loans, credit card bills, or contracts up to $15,000.

Beginning Feb. 28, they can opt to file electronically through the Internet using a court Web address instead of filing paperwork at a court office.

Superior Court Judge John Sweeney said Monday that electronic filing is for lawsuits in the Special Civil Part of the Superior Court Law Division. This court hears cases of debt collection and contract actions with damages up to $15,000. Electronic filing does not apply to major lawsuits filed in the Superior Court Law Division, which will continue to require filings on paper.

"We are strong supporters of technology and we believe this tool will increase our case processing speed and efficiency and allow us to keep up with ever-increasing caseloads," Sweeney said. CourierPost Online article

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Illinois implements statewide CM/ECF
CM/ECF is now up and running in all federal district and bankruptcy courts in this state. Upon completion they joined the 22 others, bringing the total to 23 that are using CM/ECF statewide. Viewing older documents in some courts still require using the Web PACER and Racer systems.

Saturday, January 15, 2005

Delaware: US District Court to implement CM/ECF
A new system designed to give the public more access to and information about the federal court system is having the opposite effect.

In the next several months, the U.S. District Court in Wilmington will be launching an electronic case management system as part of a nationwide effort to make all federal court records available via the Internet. Read more in delawareonline.com

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

IRS mandates e-filing for some
According to fcw.com, "Officials at large companies and tax-exempt organizations must electronically file their Internal Revenue Service forms starting in 2006, tax agency officials announced today.

The new regulations will first apply to corporations worth more than $50 million and tax-exempt organizations with assets of at least $100 million."

Tuesday, January 11, 2005

New York: State trial level criminal dockets are now available online
The Unified Court System now allows free access to criminal dockets in certain counties. According to their site here's what's now online "Criminal and supreme courts located in the following counties: Bronx, Dutchess, Erie, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, and Westchester." Try it here.

Friday, January 07, 2005

The Impact of Search Engines on Private Citizen Litigation
Although accessing this article on Findlaw's Modern Practice is problematic, keep trying. I found it very interesting. Andrew Zangrilli adeptly points out that plenty of public information is readily available on the Internet, and it's your responsibility to monitor for information published about you.

Thursday, January 06, 2005

EPIC Challenges Choicepoint to Public Hearings on Consumer Privacy
EPIC has called for hearings in Congress and before the Federal Trade Commission on the need for new privacy protections for American consumers. Read more on EIPC.org

Florida: Court officals meet today to continue sorting out public access v. privacy concerns
Manatee County Clerk of Circuit Courts R.B. "Chips" Shore and general counsel Karl Youngs plan to meet with the Florida Association of Court Clerks along with other state Senate and House committees about preliminary principles and proposals recently drafted by the state Supreme Court.

Based on existing rules and suggestions made to and compiled by Florida Supreme Court's Committee on Privacy and Court Records, the draft attempts to outline methods of restricting public access to sensitive information, such as Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, and debit, charge or credit card numbers from court documents.

Monday, January 03, 2005

Alabama, Idaho and Vermont implement statewide CM/ECF
CM/ECF is now up and running in all federal district and bankruptcy courts in these three states. Upon completion they joined the 19 others, bringing the total to 22 that are using CM/ECF statewide. Hopefully all US Circuit Courts will also begin implementation this year.

Saturday, January 01, 2005

Alabama: US Northern District Court will require e-filing starting on Monday
The federal court system in Alabama's largest district will go high-tech Monday, requiring all lawyers to file documents over the Internet. The Northern District of Alabama will officially come online with federal courts across the country in no longer accepting just paper filings, but requiring lawyers to file by computer. Sharon Harris, the district's deputy clerk, said the move gives lawyers access to a virtual courthouse. Attorneys who are registered with a login and password may file documents 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Registered attorneys will receive an e-mail notice of any activity in the electronic cases. "It is mandatory,"Harris said. "If they want to practice in the Northern District, they have to practice electronically."

PACER fees increase over 14%
Effective today accessing federal court dockets and documents using CM/ECF, web PACER, and Racer will cost $.08 per page with a 30 page price cap, or $2.40. This is an increase of over 14% from the previous required fee.

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