There's no doubt the Internet makes some tasks easier. Its easier to comparison shop, browse for information, and, incidentally, find out everything you'd ever want to know about nearly anyone, from what they paid for their new house to how their divorces are proceeding. In the long run, privacy and the Internet may prove to be mutually exclusive terms. Remote access to court files also is available in the 70 or so courts that are imaging pleadings. There is currently no fee for access and anyone can view the information in the electronic file.
Public access is a statutory requirement in bankruptcy courts.
One policy issue is created by the very nature of the Internet. The paper file was no longer available to the public at the courthouse, but the electronic file was still on the Internet. CACM's Privacy and Public Access Subcommittee, with its liaisons from the Criminal Law, Civil and Criminal Rules, Bankruptcy and Automation Committees, is reviewing the policies of the electronic case file prototype courts, as well as of a number of the courts that employ imaging technology. It has heard presentations from privacy experts, academics, government agencies, and attorneys. The subcommittee already has identified privacy and access concerns that exist across the board, from criminal and civil cases to bankruptcy and administrative cases.