MANDATORY ELECTRONIC FILING IN CRIMINAL MATTERS - ECOURTS CRIMINAL

MANDATORY ELECTRONIC FILING IN CRIMINAL MATTERS - ECOURTS CRIMINAL

NOTICE TO THE BAR from the Supreme Court

This notice is to inform the bar that the Court has determined that electronic filing in Criminal matters using eCourts Criminal will be mandatory effective December 15, 2016, with certain limited exceptions. Attached is the Court's December 5, 2016 order to that effect.

As set forth in the Court's order, as of December 15, 2016, all attorneys and law firms seeking to file documents in criminal matters must do so electronically through eCourts, except in the following limited instances: (1) cases not tracked in PROMIS/Gavel, e.g., expungements, gun permit filings, municipal appeals; (2) filings that are not part of the court's official case file, e.g., prosecutor discovery pursuant to Rule 3:13-3(b)(1); (3) filings where a fee is specifically required, e.g., municipal appeals, expungements; and (4) Megan's Law filings.

Other than in those specified limited instances, any document for filing not submitted through eCourts Criminal will be returned to the filing attorney marked as "received but not filed," with notice that it must be filed electronically within ten days of being returned in order to preserve the original received date as the filed date.

Questions regarding this notice and the Supreme Court's order may be directed to Superior Court Clerk Michelle M. Smith by email at michelle.smith@njcourts.gov or by telephone at 609-421-6100.

Dated: December 5, 2016

Glenn A. Grant, J.A.D.
Acting Administrative Director of the Courts

SUPREME COURT OF NEW JERSEY

Pursuant to N.J. Const. Art. VI., sec. 2 par. 3, it is ORDERED that the Rules Governing the Courts of the State of New Jersey are supplemented and relaxed so as to require that effective December 15, 2016, all documents filed by attorneys in New Jersey criminal matters must be submitted electronically through eCourts Criminal, with certain limited exceptions as set forth in this order.

The four limited exceptions to the requirement to file all documents in Criminal matters electronically are as follows: (1) cases not tracked in PROMIS/Gavel, e.g., expungements, gun permit filings, municipal appeals; (2) filings that are not part of the court's official case file, e.g., prosecutor discovery pursuant to Rule 3:13-3(b)(1); (3) filings where a fee is specifically required, e.g., municipal appeals, expungements; and (4) Megan's Law filings.

It is FURTHER ORDERED that effective December 15, 2016 and until further order, the provisions of Court Rule 1:5-6 ("Filing") are supplemented and relaxed so as to permit the Superior Court clerk to return pleadings received other than electronically through eCourts to the filing party as "received but not filed" where those documents are required to be electronically filed. Those returned documents must thereafter be electronically filed within 10 days of being returned in order to preserve the original received date as the filed date.

Dated: December 5, 2016

~~

Chief Justice

For the Court,