Court News
Phase II Coming Soon
Following a year-long delay, the King County District Court in Washington plans to launch the second phase of their KCDC E-Filing Portal to the public. Phase I, which launched in late 2017, was the first introduction of the KCDC E-Filing Portal. The initial rollout included the e-filing of cases initiated with a civil summons and complaint, for filings of a foreign judgment, for filings of a money judgment from a District or Municipal court, for petitions to challenge a drug-based property forfeiture, and petitions for the return of animals. Phase II will include the mandatory e-filing of pleadings in criminal, infraction, and all civil cases not already being e-filed. Additionally, users will see improvements to the docketing, calendaring, and document indexing features of the system.
Phase II, now set to launch on November 2, 2020, was originally set to October 19, 2019. The original release was delayed due to challenges that were encountered in configuring the new system. Hopes are high that the second phase of this project will deploy as expected. The live E-Filing Portal can be found at https://kcdc-efiling.kingcounty.gov/ecourt/. To learn more about the Phases and which types of records are included visit https://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/district-court/eFiling.aspx. Note: This page does not appear to be kept up to date but is a good resource for one wanting to learn more about each phase.
New Jersey's Online Access Expanded to Include Promise Gavel
Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, in-person access to courts in New Jersey has been limited and, in most places, non-existent. As of July 27, 2020, for the first time, criminal case records from the Promise Gavel system were made available online via the courts Electronic Access Program (EAP). The content provided through this access portal is the same as users would find if visiting the courthouse and using the public access terminal. This is what BRB would refer to as being online/onsite equivalent.
The convenience of online access does come at a price, a high one at that. The cost is $4 per minute, yes minute. The web-based public access portals (ACMS, Judgment, eJOC, and eCourts) will remain available to users at no charge. Those interested in subscriber access to EAP must register with the Superior Court Clerk’s Office and also establish a Judiciary Account Charge System (JACS) account. Registration is required both for new users and existing users to access the Promise Gavel criminal case data. To register as an EAP subscriber and review the FAQ, visit https://njcourts.gov/courts/superior/eap.html. To set-up a JACS account visit https://njcourts.gov/attorneys/jacs.html.
There is no definitive word as to when in-person access to public access terminals and public viewing rooms will be made available again.
Maine eCourt to Expand Online Offerings
Maine eCourts, the state's online court case management system, will be expanding its online offerings this fall. The courts included in the expansion are the Bangor District Court and the Penobscot County Superior Court. Cases to be included will be many types of civil cases and family matters.
Currently, the state has already made available online record search capabilities for all Traffic Violations statewide along with some eFiling. Expect to see more types of cases becoming available within the coming years. The Administrative Office of the Courts announced recently that it plans to make the system available for all case types in all trial courts statewide by 2022.