Georgia: Fed Courts Prepping for Mandatory E-Filing

From the Fulton County Daily Report, February 1, 2005

Just 15 minutes before the federal clerk s office closed Jan. 24, two runners for law firms found themselves barred by a broken sprinkler from delivering a last-minute court filing. They were absolutely in a panic, U.S. Clerk of Court Luther D. Thomas recalled. The burst sprinkler had set off the building s fire alarms, causing the elevators automatically to descend to the ground floor and remain there. As the runners contemplated how to clear a security barrier on the 15th floor and whether to climb 22 flights of stairs to the clerk s office, Thomas said, we thought we were going to have a little bit of a scene.

I ve got to get up there, one runner told the clerk. My law firm won t understand. That kind of last-minute race to the courthouse to meet filing deadlines before the clerk s office closes at 4:45 p.m. can be avoided now with electronic filing an optional system that becomes mandatory on July 15 for the 12,000 to 15,000 attorneys who are members of the federal bar in Georgia s Northern District. Under the electronic system, attorneys can file documents anytime prior to midnight and meet court deadlines for that day. Electronic filing of court documents became an option for lawyers practicing in the Northern District last July. But court administrators are now requiring members of the federal bar, including attorneys admitted pro hac vice, to obtain a login and password that will permit them, beginning July 15, to file electronically all documents except for initial complaints and criminal indictments. An order last year by U.S. District Judge Orinda D. Evans, the Northern District s chief judge, will require, by July, that the vast majority of court documents be filed electronically. Except for initiating documents in a case, those filed under seal or those filed by pro se litigantsoall of which still will have to be filed on paper filings will have to be made electronically. Unless our procedures allow you to file manually, you can t show up [with a paper filing] without the leave of the court, said Chief Deputy Clerk James N. Hatten. Computerized case filings also will allow attorneys to file 24 hours a day, seven days a week from anywhere in the world, Hatten said.

New Rules and Fast Access. The transition will require attorneys to have high-speed Internet access and to prepare electronic documents in PDF [portable document format], using software such as Adobe Acrobat Reader version 3.0 or higher or pdfFactory. Hatten said he suspects that the majority of the Northern District s federal bar already has the required software and Internet access. Attorneys also will have to redact certain information from court pleadings before filing them electronically. Last year the Judicial Conference of the United States adopted a national policy barring publication of sensitive information in electronic filings, including Social Security numbers, names of minor children, dates of birth, financial account numbers and home addresses. That information, if necessary to the case, may be filed in an unredacted copy under seal. According to an order signed by Evans last year, responsibility for omitting or redacting sensitive personal information rests solely with the filing attorney. Failure to do so could subject attorneys to sanctions or other disciplinary action. Electronically filed documents will be accessible to the public through PACER, the federal Public Access to Court Electronic Records system, which is available via the Internet. Court orders will be filed similarly. Hatten said the new procedures will mean court records are instantly available, as opposed to the traditional two-to-three day delays associated with stamping, filing and entering documents in the court record. Beginning July 15, court notices of case activity also will be sent to parties electronically rather than through the U.S. Postal Service, court administrators said. In addition, a registered attorney may have electronic notices sent to other people in the firm, including paralegals and secretaries, Thomas said. Each electronic notice will include the time and date a document was filed and everyone to whom notice was sent.The federal court currently is offering training sessions in electronic filing. If more than 10 people at a firm seek training, the court will send a trainer to conduct training on site. Training can be arranged by calling [404] 215-1675.

More SecureHatten said that the filing system is more secure than most Internet banking. Attorneys also will be sent confirmation copies of filed documents that can be kept as a defense against online document tampering by hackers. Hatten said that all court records are backed up nightly and that redundancies that would preserve documents in case of technical failure are built into the electronic system. In addition, clerks who formally docketed court records now will be assigned to quality control. Hatten said that nearly half of the members of the Northern District s bar already have begun filing electronically. That number, he said, is growing by 2 percent to 3 percent a month. Some smaller firms and sole practitioners already have discovered they are saving money formerly spent on couriers to deliver documents to the federal clerk. iOur first [electronic] filer was a sole practitioner,i Hatten said. More details on electronic filing in the Northern District, including interactive application forms for a login and password, can be found at www.gand.uscourts.gov/