Electronic Filing's First Year in Colorado

• Publication year: 2002
• Pages: 41
• Citation: Vol. 31 No. 2 Pg. 41

31 Colo.Law. 41 Colorado Lawyer 2002.

2002, April, Pg. 41. Electronic Filing's First Year In Colorado

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41

Vol. 31, No. 2, Pg. 41

The Colorado Lawyer
April 2002
Vol. 31, No. 4 [Page 41]

Departments
Technology and Law Practice
Electronic Filing's First Year In Colorado
by Elizabeth Robertson

Articles that appear in this Department do not necessarily reflect the official position of The Colorado Lawyer or the Colorado Bar Association, and the publication of these articles does not constitute any recommendation or endorsement of the goods or services mentioned therein

Elizabeth Robertson, Denver, practices law with Duncan Ostrander & Dingess, P.C.?(303) 779-0200; erobertson@ dodpc.com. Robertson was a law clerk for Judge Kenneth K Stuart, Chief Judge of the Arapahoe County District Court, the first district court in Colorado to implement eFiling. She also has had substantial contact with CourtLink®; has participated in an eFiling planning meeting coordinated by the State Court Administrator's Office; and remains in contact with various court officials, CourtLink® executives, and attorneys regarding eFiling issues.

During the past decade, district court filings in Colorado have increased 19 percent.1 Given this increase and the day-to-day demands on legal services providers, tools that improve efficiency are now even more important to the practice of law and the justice system. To this end, Colorado became the first state to offer electronic filing ("eFiling") statewide at the district court level. "CourtLink® eFile,"2 formerly known as "JusticeLink®," is the state's exclusive electronic system for filing and serving documents with district courts. Statewide implementation was completed in January 2001.

This article provides a status report on the system's first year and how law firms and the courts are using eFiling. It also provides some tips on filing and service. First, some background information may be in order.

What is eFiling?

CourtLink® eFile is a secure Web-based service for filing and serving legal documents. The eFile application replicates in an electronic format the process of filing paper documents. Colorado court rules denote that an eFiled pleading is the equivalent of a paper filing for all purposes.3 The two elements of the eFile application are eFiling and electronically serving ("eServing") documents. EFiling allows documents to be electronically transmitted and filed with or by the court. EService allows filing attorneys to designate opposing counsel to be served documents. The eFile application produces printable receipts (confirming that an eFiling was successfully transmitted) and

e-mail notifications of filings and orders. All eFiled documents are stored on CourtLink servers for electronic retrieval at any time via the Internet.

The eFiling application is currently a pilot program in Colorado and is limited to specific case types and courts. Colorado attorneys may file documents in district court for civil, domestic, probate, and water cases using the eFiling system. However, the eFiling system is not currently available for criminal and mental health cases in district court, and no such filings are available in county and appellate courts.

eFiling and Law Firms

Without ever leaving their desks...