"The Ohio Supreme Court hopes to launch an online site by December that within two years could contain legal records from all 385 Ohio courts - from the high court down through the municipals.
The Ohio Courts Network - discussed within the legal community since 2003 but with nothing tangible to report to date - received a big boost last week when Gov. Ted Strickland included the idea in his state budget lineup.
Strickland proposed allocating $10.5 million over the next two years to get the program up and running.
The network would essentially bring every criminal and civil case docket, from all 88 counties in the state, to the fingertips of any judge or attorney who wants the information.
For that reason, in part, the system has drawn spotty support within the judicial community. Groups representing probate- and municipal-court judges and the Ohio Clerk of Courts Association have already endorsed the program.
Groups representing juvenile- and domestic-court judges, concerned about privacy, have been silent. Appeals court judges are neutral, and common pleas judges have backed it but are concerned about what the network will eventually cost at the local level, another major unknown detail. "
The challenges that Ohio faces include:
* Courts in various stages of technology adoption
* Multiple case management systems
* What information courts will be required to provide to the network?
* How will the courts staff be trained and supported?
* How will all the attorney filers be trained and supported?
* Will court filing fees be increased to pay for the maintenance of the network?
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The Ohio Courts Network could provide the people of Ohio greater access to their courts but the cost will likely far exceed the $10.5 million currently requested.
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