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Finding Your Way around the Courthouse. Federal & State Courts Go Digital. Court Records Online PACER - P ublic A ccess to C ourt E lectronic R ecords Case Management: CM/ECF State Courts Access & Filing. Court Records Online: Basic Principles. E-record is official
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Federal & State Courts Go Digital Court Records Online PACER- Public Access to Court Electronic Records Case Management: CM/ECF State Courts Access & Filing
Court Records Online: Basic Principles • E-record is official • Paper is a format, not the “original” • Paper is expensive • E-documents preferable to paper • No preparation or scanning • Cost savings • Judicial process remains unchanged.
Accessing Court Records • PACER • Remote 24-hour access; concurrent access by multiple parties. • Download directly from court • Automatic email notice of case activity • Records include - • How would you use this information? • Privacy concerns?
Filing Court Records • Case Management: CM/ECF • Registration required; use restricted • Remote 24-hour access; concurrent access by multiple parties. • Automatic email notice of case activity • Parties responsible for content – privacy concerns
Why Research Court Records? • Only 3.2% of federal civil cases and 11% of federal criminal cases make it to trial completion • Only 15% of federal district court decisions are reported • Only 50-70% of federal appellate court decisions are reported (varies by circuit) • 30-50% of federal and state appellate court decisions are unreported
Docket Sheets v. Documents • Docket = chronological table of contents to a court file • Many courts post docket sheets • Fewer courts post documents
Docket Sheets Can Provide: • Information about clients & potential clients • Is the client litigious? • Has the client filed for bankruptcy? Filed a legal malpractice action? Been involved in fraud? • Been sued for attorney’s fees? • Information about potential hires • Routine background checks • Bankruptcy • Debt • Fraud • Conflicts between firm and prospective hire’s existing clients
Dockets for Current Awareness • Has my client been sued, but not served? • Who else has sued the party my client wants to sue? • Who is suing whom? • Hot topics in litigation
Documents Can Provide: • Sample pleadings • Background information on types of cases heard by particular judges • Types of cases opposing counsel usually handle • How judge typically rules on motion for summary judgment. • Access may be restricted to protect parties
PACER password is available for Duke law students. Ask at Reference desk.
A Nature of Suit search lets you retrieve other cases with same assigned topic. Here – airplane litigation suits.
Other Ways to Access Court Records • Justia - PACER front end & more • Courtlink - a component of “Total Litigator” from Lexis • Westlaw’sCourtExpress • Legal Dockets Online • LLRX database linking to court rules • Some services include state court records.
Justia: no charge to search federal district court dockets. Subscribe to an RSS feed of all new cases by “Nature of Suit” - topic. Conduct a search and subscribe to an RSS feed of the search results. Link to PACER and news about case.
File & Service is not available with law school licenses.
Discovery: An Early Step in Litigation • Massive quantity of information in variety of formats • E-documents, voice mail, email, IM • Legacy systems • Unresolved questions • Litigation holds & preservation of materials • Spoliation and adverse inference instructions • Cost sharing • Changing expectations for “Meet & Confer” • Impatient judges; confused lawyers • More rule changes coming.
Court documents on Westlaw – compare with PACER. Not all docs are on Westlaw.
Court Rules – a fair & smooth operation • Basic rules for litigation • Federal Rules of Civil Procedure – FRCP • Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure • Federal Rules of Evidence • Rules are in USCA, USCS, court websites… • State court rules – usually part of annotated code – less jurisdictional variation • Rules for particular courts – ex. S.CT • Provide uniformity, but w/ local rule variations
Do Court Rules Matter? • Rules of the game • Courts interpret rules – • Case annotations are crucial • USCA and USCS rules volumes or online • Federal Rules Decisions • Shepards & KeyCite to update • Secondary sources • For commentary & more • Moore’s Federal Practice, 2d • Federal Practice and Procedure
Final Thoughts • The Clerk of Court can be your friend • Read court rules & local variations • Learn about opposing counsel & judge • Pay attention to litigation process –discovery rules, forms, etc.