Federal
Court First for E-Filing (11 October 2000)
Litigants
in the Federal Court are now able to file documents over
the Internet and pay filing fees using on-line credit
card facilities, making it the first national court to
do so.
Chief Justice
Michael Black made the announcement at the Australian
Institute for Judicial Administration Technology for Justice
Conference in Melbourne on Monday 9 October.
The new system
has been piloted over the past two months by a number
of law firms throughout Australia.
Electronic
filing will mean that documents can be filed 24 hours
a day, 365 days a year. It will promote efficiency and
save time and money.
"It will increase
accuracy, access and efficiency while reducing the need
for paper and storage space," said Chief Justice Michael
Black.
"In this Court
we are constantly searching for ways to make it easier
for litigants and practitioners and to make justice more
readily accessible."
The new system
will not, however, replace traditional filing methods:
this can still be done over-the-counter, by facsimile
and post.
Electronic
filing will be implemented in four stages: during the
first stage people who want to begin an action, or file
documents relating to a current case, can file documents
on-line and pay by credit card via Court's home page -
www.fedcourt.gov.au
Concerns about
the security of financial transactions have been addressed
through the use of encryption technology.
During the
first stage of implementation, documents will be returned
by post once they have been approved for filing and allocated
a case number.
By the end
of next year the Court plans to have a totally integrated
system that will provide authorised users with on-line
viewing and retrieval of documents, Court dockets, and
calendars, including on-line searching of Court databases
using current search engines.
The Electronic
Filing Project has been overseen by a steering committee
of judges within the Court and a working group consisting
of representatives of the Law Council of Australia, the
NSW Bar Association, the NSW Supreme Court, the Department
of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs and Court staff.
More information
about Electronic Filing can be obtained by contacting
Philip Kellow, Deputy Registrar in the Principal Registry
on 02 92308336 or the Registry in your capital.
