News Item
eFiling to rollout statewide in Minnesota district courts

Posted: Monday, September 21, 2015

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Court users will be able to electronically file and serve documents in all 87 Minnesota district courts by the end of 2015, under a plan detailed today by the Minnesota Judicial Branch.
 
The move to electronic filing and service of case documents – known as eFiling and eService – is part of the Minnesota Judicial Branch’s eCourtMN initiative, which is transforming the state’s court system by replacing paper-based court files with an electronic information environment. The goal of the eCourtMN initiative – which received a 2014 State Government Innovation Award from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs – is to make the state’s court system more accessible, more efficient, and more convenient for court customers.
 
One of the key elements of the eCourtMN initiative is the establishment of eFiling and eService – giving case participants the ability to submit documents to the court and serve documents to opposing parties electronically, through an online portal. This allows court customers to file documents without traveling to the courthouse or paying for postage or courier costs, allows filers to submit documents immediately and outside of courthouse business hours, and allows court documents to be sent to filers electronically.
 
“The eCourtMN Initiative is the largest transformation in the 150-year history of Minnesota’s Judicial Branch,” said Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie S. Gildea. “This initiative will produce new efficiencies in our justice system and increase on-demand access to information for the public and our justice partners. The statewide rollout of eFiling and eService is a major milestone for the eCourtMN initiative, and will bring the benefits of this incredible transformation to court users across the state.”
 
Currently, eFiling and eService is available in 11 counties across the state (Cass, Clay, Cook, Dakota, Faribault, Hennepin, Kandiyohi, Lake, Morrison, Ramsey, and Washington). These counties were part of a multi-year pilot project aimed at testing and refining the eFiling process and related policies. Based on the success of that pilot, electronic filing and service became mandatory for attorneys, government agencies, guardians ad litem, and sheriffs filing documents in those 11 pilot counties on July 1, 2015.
 
Throughout the rest of 2015, the Minnesota Judicial Branch will begin allowing filers in the other 76 counties in the state to use the eFiling and eService system. The Minnesota Judicial Branch has laid out a tentative rollout schedule, which can be viewed on the Judicial Branch’s website at http://www.mncourts.gov/efsrollout. Visitors to the site have the ability to find out when each county plans to begin allowing filers to use the eFiling and eService system, and sort these dates by county, judicial district, and tentative eFile and eService implementation date. The rollout schedule is subject to change, and site visitors can subscribe to receive e-mail updates to the rollout schedule.
 
Upon implementation, eFiling and eService will be voluntary for filers in the 76 non-pilot counties, meaning filers will still be able to file documents using the traditional, paper-based method. Electronic filing and service in these counties will continue to be voluntary until July 1, 2016. Under recent amendments to Minnesota’s Rules of Court, use of the eFiling and eService system to file court documents will become mandatory for attorneys, government agencies, guardians ad litem, and sheriffs in all district courts statewide on July 1, 2016. Use of the eFiling and eService system will remain voluntary for other filers, such as self-represented litigants.
 
In addition to electronic filing and service of court documents, the eCourtMN initiative includes a wide array of various projects that are utilizing new technologies to increase efficiency and expand access to information throughout Minnesota’s justice system. This includes:
  • Providing judges and court staff with new electronic tools to more efficiently review and process court documents within the courthouse;
  • Creating an electronic portal for government partners – such as law enforcement, prosecutors, and public defenders – to more efficiently access court documents and records;
  • Making it easier and more convenient for the public to view electronic court records from across the state at their local courthouse;
  • Partnering with the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to expand use of electronic citations (eCitations) and other charging documents (eCharging). These tools allow law enforcement and prosecutors to file citations and complaints electronically, from their office or squad car, with the data automatically transferred to court and law enforcement databases. Use of eCharging and eCitations will become mandatory for adult complaints and adult citations statewide on July 1, 2016.
“Throughout the Judicial Branch, we are implementing an ambitious redesign agenda that is utilizing new technologies to improve our service to the public, increase information sharing and efficiency within the justice system, and make it more convenient for our customers to interact with the courts,” said State Court Administrator Jeff Shorba. “The eCourtMN initiative is the centerpiece of these efforts, and we are eager to bring one of the most important elements of this transformation – eFiling and eService – to district courts across the state.”
 
The Minnesota Judicial Branch has posted informational resources, training materials, and a three-step guide to starting eFiling and eService at www.mncourts.gov/eFile.  The Minnesota Judicial Branch also operates an eFile Support Center for filers with questions about the eFile and eServe system.