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May/June 1996 Volume 8 Number 3
Electronic Filing
The circuit court for Prince George’s County accepted its first electronic filing in a motor tort case on November 16, 1996, at 3:43 p.m. The filing was done through JusticeLINKTM, a system created by a public/private partnership between the circuit court for Prince George’s County, Maryland, and Andersen Consulting, LLP. The JusticeLINK pilot project allows for the electronic filing of only motor tort and foreclosure cases at this time. The system also allows subscribing lawyers to obtain court information, access motor tort and foreclosure court records, interact with the court and clerk’s office, file documents, and communicate electronically with other subscribers - without paper - 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Under the terms of the public/private partnership between Prince George’s County and Andersen Consulting, the court provides its expertise and time to define the business practice and knowledge of how electronic filing will work in the day-to-day world of case acceptance and processing. The county is responsible for providing the technical environment (LAN, cabling, routers, printers) necessary for the integration of JusticeLINK and the revised business process of filing and processing pleadings. The county retains control of the JusticeLINK case management system interface and is assured the data remains secure and intact. The county is also assured that in the event JusticeLINK does not continue, the system can be removed without jeopardy to the court’s database. Andersen Consulting receives the benefit of the court and legal community fine-tuning and testing its product.
Prince George’s County was chosen to test JusticeLINK because the circuit court has a reputation for innovation. That reputation paid off. Obliged to spend only $25,000 during the installation and testing of JusticeLINK, the court and clerk's office received roughly a dozen computers free of charge for the life of the pilot program. Laptop computers and courtroom docking stations for those laptops were also given to three judges. A docking station allows a user to plug a laptop into a full-sized keyboard and full-sized monitor.
The clerk's office has been supplied with scanners and communications equipment needed to make JusticeLINK work. Clerks can optically scan paper filings into the computer system. From there, judges and clerks can move documents electronically rather than pushing carts full of documents into courtrooms.
JusticeLINK software costs subscribing attorneys $175 to $200 per workstation. Attorneys also pay $15 per filing and $0.50 per minute for on-line time to query the court’s case management database information.
The greatest promise for electronic filing is the improvement in the business processes of the court and lawyer. In examining the process of foreclosure and motor tort cases in Prince George’s County, court staff are uncovering startling information. For example, the clerk of the court analyzed the steps required to docket a foreclosure case to final judgment and found that 122 steps were required. Electronic filing without changing the process reduced the number of steps to 97 - a 28 percent reduction. But this is just scratching the surface. The court believes that full implementation of electronic filing will effect a reduction of 50 percent or more.
Jim McMillan, director of the NCSC’s Court Technology Laboratory, thinks the JusticeLINK project is very exciting. He looks forward to the day when courts will further develop some general electronic filing standards to facilitate judges’ work with electronic legal documents. He points out that receiving the document is only half the battle. Like the circuit court for Prince George’s County, the courts need to plan the electronic work flow or path through the court. He notes, "In some ways we're early in the game, but we want to get the concept of electronic filing down first." State Court Administrator George B. Riggin, Jr., Esquire, cautions, however, that whatever technology is applied, courts must ensure that there is always room for those without computers to have equal access to the courts.
The potential for efficiency with electronic filing systems such as JusticeLINK is great. Judge Arthur M. (Monty) Ahalt of Prince George's County Circuit Court notes that giving judges better access to evidence and case files saves time and person-hours, thus freeing judges to spend more time on administering justice. Attorneys, court staff, and the public likewise benefit from the project. JusticeLINK improves communication and access to court records, eliminates overwhelming paperwork, reduces the number of last-minute trips to the courthouse to meet filing deadlines, and connects the court, attorneys, and the community.
Suzanne H. James is the court administrator for Prince George's County, Maryland. She can be reached at (301)952-3708.
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