Michigan courts making switch to electronic filing, paperless services The Detroit News...

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1 Page 1 of 5 eedition Stay Connected Customer Service Advertise Classifieds Metro and State TRENDING TOPICS MSU HOOPS U-M HOOPS KEVYN ORR PLANS MONICA CONYERS MATT TUIASOSOPO FOREIGN Home Metro Metro and State MARCH 18, 2013 AT Michigan courts making switch to electronic filing, paperless services BY URSULA WATSON THE DETROIT NEWS 1 COMMENTS Mount Clemens Courts across Michigan are abandoning the use of paper for the convenience of electronic filing or e-filing documents, with Macomb County Circuit Court making a big push to go digital. The switch means improved court employee productivity, shorter lines at county clerk's offices and cost savings for personnel and storage for courts, the legal community and the public. Oakland and Wayne counties also offer paperless services and are looking to expand their efforts. And the State Court Administrative Office recently chose ImageSoft Inc. of Southfield to create a central electronic filing platform available to all district, circuit, probate and appeals courts, and the Supreme Court. The benefits of e-filing have been immediate for Macomb Circuit Court judges and clerks, said Anthony June, the court's communications and technology manager. Last year the court paid $260,274 to convert to a document management system from ImageSoft. The court and company will evenly split all e-filing revenue for three years. "Clerks have immediate access to documents without having to pull a case file, and that helps them continue their work flow," June said. Recommend 0 0 PRINT A A A Zoom SHARE Anthony June, left, Macomb Circuit Court s communications and technology... 0

2 Page 2 of 5 Purchase Image Clerk Angie Burke retrieves court files for judges March 5 at Macomb County Circuit Court. Wading through mounds of paperwork was once the norm for court employees, but that s changing. The benefits of e-filing have been immediate for judges and clerks, court officials say. (Todd McInturf / The Detroit News) Circuit Court Judge John Foster said he's pleased with the time-saving, streamlined system. "It used to be we would have to call down to the clerk's office and they would go find the file, put it on the dumbwaiter and my secretary would go get it. I then would leaf through all the papers," he said. Join the Conversation POLICIES Community Policy Privacy Policy Terms of Service While courts in Wayne and Oakland counties have made progress in going paperless, said ImageSoft President Scott Bade, Macomb is on the leading edge. "Other courts have focused on doing one case type at a time," Bade said. "Macomb is pushing forward with going electronic in most of the circuit court." Currently, the e-filing is for inbound documents only, which saves attorneys time, said court administrator Jennifer Phillips. Rather than mailing or paying runners to rush documents to court, attorneys can file their paperwork and serve other attorneys, she added.

3 Page 3 of 5 Phillips said she remembers when wading through mounds of paper was the norm. "I worked as a legal secretary and paralegal and to do a motion for the court you would have all these stacks of paper on the floor," she said. "It was very paper intensive." Macomb County Clerk Carmella Sabaugh said she has seen e-filing clear paper clutter. While visiting the Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds she was astonished by its file room. "There are no files," she said. "It is unbelievable. I said to myself, 'Is this really happening?' " Public benefits most Oakland County Circuit Court turned to e-filing in 2007 using Tyler Technologies of Texas. It costs users $5 to file electronically, with the county and Tyler splitting the revenue. While not completely paperless, the court's civil docket is electronic. Savings in paper, mailing and envelope costs equal $10,000 annually, said court administrator Kevin Oeffner. But, he said, the real savings is in time. "We have fewer staff because of budget cuts," Oeffner said. "It frees up employees to do other things that we still have to do." It's the public, though, who benefits the most, he said. "In the old days, the attorney had to drive to the court to file documents and make several trips during the life of the case," he said. Now, "the attorney can do this electronically at their office and they're charging the client for less cost." Those filing documents without legal representation also will benefit. "In the past, the public would have to bring their documents to court, now they can save time, gas and postage," said John Cooperrider, Oakland court business administrator. Even with the $5 fee it was free before it's a savings from the $35 it costs for a courier to deliver documents. Mike Gruich, spokesman for Wayne County's Third Judicial Circuit of Michigan, said e-filing has been successful since it was implemented in November "About 76 percent of our civil division alone is electronic and we are looking to get the approval to continue the rest," he said. "We had 1,500 filings in the first month.

4 Page 4 of 5 "Now, we have 22,000 filings a month that come from the legal community and the public. We have about a million pages in electronic format that we don't have in paper anymore." Even with the move to e-filing, don't expect courts to go completely paperless, ImageSoft's Bade said. "Some judges may demand a paper file and an indigent filer may have no means to submit electronically." uwatson@detroitnews.com (313) The Detroit News aims to provide a forum that fosters smart, civil discussions on the news and events that we cover. The News will not condone personal attacks, off topic posts or brutish language on our site. If you find a comment that you believe violates these standards, please click the "X" in the upper right corner of the post to report it. Jim McNally Top Commenter West Juneau, Alaska The Michigan Court of Appeals and the federal courts have been using e-filing for several years. It has been quite successful. Even those systems with a filing fee or a convenience fee (such as the Court of Appeals) have reduced the costs of handling cases for attorneys and clients. We no longer have to print and file multiple copies of motions and briefs, and we do not need to make multiple copies of our opponents' paperwork for our own files. It saves time, ink, paper, and money. As an attorney, I am looking forward to the adoption of e- filing in the circuit courts. Reply 1 Like 6 hours ago Facebook social plugin More From Metro and State Detroit emergency manager says public safety, police crucial issues Newly appointed emergency manager Kevyn Orr has a long road ahead in fixing Detroit s problems, but public safety will be on the top of his to-do list. Lawyer revives Michigan prison sex abuse fight, this time for teens Owner of Detroit repair shop says employee Monica Conyers doing a great job Berkley, Detroit Seders to raise awareness of hunger 3 injured in ambulance, truck crash Briefs: Federal grant to boost Armada Township Fire Department

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