Circuit courts in Northwest Arkansas are probably a year or two away from changing to state mandated electronic filing of legal documents, according to state officials.
Judicial districts in Washington and Benton counties have electronic filing in place for real estate documents and land records, but criminal and civil filings are done the old-fashioned way.
The courts first have to be on the Contexte automated case management system before electronic filing can be implemented.
Electronic filing will allow attorneys to access a secure system and file pleadings and documents from their computers.
Pulaski County has been using the system for about a year and several hundred thousand documents have been filed, according to Jason Kennedy, assistant chief deputy circuit clerk.
“It works much better than our old system using paper,” Kennedy said. “It’s quicker, more reliable and there are fewer mistakes.”
There isn’t a schedule for other counties to begin the changeover.
“On March 19, we’ll end Pulaski County’s one-year pilot period on e-filing and they weren’t planning on doing any more (counties) until that one’s over,” said Stephanie Harris, with the Administrative Office of the Courts in Little Rock.
The office paid $725,550 for perpetual statewide licenses for all courts.
At A Glance
Game Plan
Implementing electronic filing is a partnership between the Arkansas Administrative Office of the Courts and local judicial districts.
These services will be provided by the administrative office to the circuit courts at no cost:
• The Contexte case management system will be available through servers in Little Rock
• Annual maintenance, backup, and recovery services for the system
• Professional services, including project management, business analysis, training, configuration, go-live support, and ongoing remote support
• A conversion of legacy data
• Travel for administrative employees for agreed services
• Access, training, and configuration for electronic filing and electronic citation when they are available.
The courts are responsible for:
• Acquiring and maintaining all hardware that meets the minimum technology requirements, including networking hardware, personal computers, printers and scanners.
• Providing high-speed Internet access to use the system
• The travel expense of sending staff to Little Rock for training
• Providing a suitable training facility if a staff member is unable to travel to Little Rock for training
• Supplemental data conversions.
• Converting image links through Contexte to an approved document management system.
Source: Arkansas Administrative Office Of The Courts
Implementing electronic filing in the 4th Judicial District is expected to cost about $150,000 in Washington County and $60,000 in Madison County. Hardware and related costs could cost about $35,000 in Washington County.
Lawyers are charged a one-time fee of $100 to offset the cost of online training, and managing and supporting the accounts. A registered lawyer will be able to file in any of the courts that are actively e-filing.
“Washington County has requested that we start a Contexte implementation project, which basically means we convert their paper data into the Contexte system which we are trying to implement throughout the state,” said Alex Rodgers, one of the project managers at the Administrative Office of the Courts. “It’s difficult to estimate how long it will take but it’s safe to say Washington County will not be e-filing this year, unless current projects are re-prioritized.”
Without a data conversion, a Contexte project can be completed in three to six months depending on the size of the court. A data conversion can extend a project to 12 to 18 months.
The goal is to have 80 percent of the state caseload on Contexte, the case management system mandated by the state, and to shut down an existing case management system by the end of 2016.
Benton County is converting existing circuit court paper records to electronic records and is expected to have that done by the end of this year or early in the first quarter of 2014, said Benton County Circuit Clerk Brenda DeShields.
“But that’s just for the case management program,” DeShields said. “The e-filing is actually still in the pilot stage with Pulaski County, it’s not been released to the clerks yet.”
Kyle Sylvester, Washington County Circuit Clerk, said he expects in the next couple of weeks to get a more firm schedule.
“I’m waiting to find out where we are on the list,” Sylvester said.
Sylvester said, in the interim, he’s also looking at some software options for electronic filing and data management the office may be able to integrate with Contexte or to use for image warehousing because the system currently in use costs about $12,000 a month. Sylvester said he may be able to assemble a more efficient, easier to use system at a fraction of the current cost.
“We’ve been on this system for many, many years and we’re having some glitches with it, but I think there are some things out there that are going to be more streamlined, more up to date, that will have better features and be more cost effective not only on the money side but also on the way my staff does their work,” Sylvester said. “It could streamline and probably cut their work load in half as far as data entry.”
Changes Expected
DeShields and Sylvester said they expect electronic filing will bring significant changes.
“With Benton County, since we already automatically record — we’re already doing that for the real estate — it’s been a huge help for the customer as well as us as far as streamlining things,” DeShields said. “So, I would think with the court records it’s going to do the same thing because the attorneys are already used to being able to do that with federal court. I think it’s going to be more efficient and convenient for the attorneys and the public.”
Sylvester said his clerks are busy from the time the doors open in the morning until they’re locked at the end of the day.
“Once the Contexte system goes into play and people start e-filing their cases and documents, I think the traffic inside the office cuts down,” Sylvester said. “That’s a double-edged sword because we like to do the customer service, being able to speak with the constituent but it’s just going to be more convenient for them to be able to e-file.”
DeShields also has concerns about losing the personal interaction.
“I know the only concern I’ve heard from some of the legal community is that it does away with some of the interaction between the clerk’s office and the legal field. I think you lose something there,” DeShields said. “That’s pretty important, to know the people that are filing and being able to assist the attorneys.”
Ed McClure, a lawyer with Matthews, Campbell and Rhoades in Rogers, said filing legal documents electronically in Benton and Washington counties will be convenient and save lawyers and their staffs time and money.
“Most attorneys in Benton and Washington counties practice in both counties. For us, it is surprisingly cheaper to mail pleadings (to Bentonville) to be filed than to drive them over with the time and the expense and, certainly, that’s the case for Washington County,” McClure said. “That doesn’t even get into saving resources, whether it’s gasoline or paper or whatever. I just think it’s a good deal all the way around.”
McClure said electronic filing is a natural evolution of the electronic age and people are becoming more comfortable with the concept.
“To me it’s just like anything else that you would do over the Internet. It’s just a matter of course, like sending your client an email, for example. There was a time when I would not have thought to do that but now much of the communication with clients is via email,” McClure said. “Clearly there will be a learning curve for all of us but it has worked fairly well in federal system so I’m, personally, really looking forward to it.”
Tried And True
Electronic filing has been used since August 2005 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas, Chris Johnson, court clerk, said. All lawyers are required to file documents electronically after an initial lawsuit is filed. The initial filing requires a trip to the courthouse and paying the filing fee to clerks. Everything after that point is electronic.
“It’s been wonderful, no comparison,” Johnson said. “My court, my judges, my staff and, I think, the bar are well pleased.”
People representing themselves, pro se, are allowed to file paper documents at the courthouse.
It did take some time for lawyers to get comfortable with electronic filing, Johnson said.
“The practice of law is so conservative, it’s so tradition-bound about paper documents, there’s a little bit of a curve on it,” Johnson said. “For the first two or three years you’re having to do a lot of training, kind of hand-holding, attorneys opening up new accounts. We still do training a couple of times a year.”
The change also shifted responsibility for filing from federal clerks to attorneys and their staff members. The attorneys are also doing the basic docketing for their cases, Johnson said.
“They do it. My staff is essentially doing quality control, determining that it was filed properly, that it was labeled properly,” Johnson said. “Both sides are given immediate notice of electronic filing and the judge is noticed immediately. It’s beautiful.”
Filing is not limited to 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Attorneys can file documents any time of day or night so long as they meet their deadline, Johnson said. The filing day effectively changes at midnight.
“Some courts around the country, in the federal system, not only do they get the complaint electronically, they also receive the $350 electronically. A debit goes electronically from the lawyer’s account to the court,” Johnson said. “That’s something we’re working toward.”
Public Access
Balancing public access with privacy is a work in progress.
In the federal system, documents can be accessed electronically using PACER, a paid system that allows the public or customers to access and read public records remotely. PACER access is provided free at the courthouses in the district, Johnson said. Documents that are not under seal are available immediately after being filed.
Public access for the state system is still being worked out, Harris said.
“We need to be having this discussion. Folks are all about access unless it’s their records online. They do not want their personal business out there so we get a lot of emails and phone calls from people telling us to take their divorce case, for example, off the website,” Harris said. “They’re public court records. But, we’re losing that practical obscurity of having to go to the courthouse if we want to snoop around. Now, we can just get on our computers. I think this is a big issue the whole country is dealing with and now, as we’re starting this process, we’re hearing it and I totally understand.”
Harris said there is sensitive information in case files that must be dealt with carefully or redacted, like Social Security numbers and the identity of children.
The filer is responsible for making sure confidential or sensitive information is not included in court filings, Kennedy said. Documents are checked by staff and sent back if any problems are found.