This Draft Specification provides the XML DTD required for Court Filing. By Robert Plotkin. Despite the growing use of computers in the legal profession, authoring and filing legal pleadings remains a labor-intensive process that has yet to fully benefit from the potential for automation offered by recent advances in computer technology. Efforts are underway, however, to computerize virtually every aspect of court filing and case management. Several courts and government agencies have already begun to supplement or replace their paper-based filing systems with electronic filing systems that allow pleadings to be filed over the Internet.
Some systems also allow parties to access their case files and the court's docket over the Internet.
These early systems, although rudimentary, are already facilitating interactions with the courts and are allowing attorneys and courts to recognize significant cost savings. The electronic filing systems of tomorrow will further automate the filing process and integrate computer systems for filing, case management, docketing, storage, and security. A large and growing number of legal and computer professionals have recognized the potential benefits that would result from the widespread adoption of electronic court filing systems, and are actively working on developing nationwide open technological standards for electronic court filing. Although current efforts to develop standards must still overcome several technological, legal, and cultural hurdles, significant progress has already been made toward the goal of developing the foundation for the next generation of electronic filing systems. The success of such efforts will require the continued and growing involvement of all segments of the legal profession.