Patent ID: 7475040

Claim:
A system for processing electronic return items, comprising: a plurality of first electronic processors, each of the first electronic processors including a sorting function, and each programmed to electronically receive a different plurality of electronic return item notification files from a different plurality of payor banks, each electronic return item notification file including a data structure with a designated bank of first deposit and electronic reproduction data for at least an entire front face of the return item, wherein each of a plurality of the electronic return item notification files designates a different bank of first deposit, wherein each of the first electronic processors is programmed to process the different electronic return item notification files received thereby; and a plurality of central processing systems, each of the central processing systems programmed to receive and process different electronic return item notification files received thereby from a plurality of different first electronic processors in advance of and separate from magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) capture, deposit accounting, cash management, and float processing systems of the respective banks of first deposit designated in the different electronic return item notification files, wherein the first electronic processors are programmed to determine based on at least one criterion, for each of a respective different plurality of the given electronic return item notification files received thereby, at least one of the central processing systems from among the plurality of central processing systems at different locations to which to send the electronic return item notification file, wherein the central processing systems are programmed to electronically process in advance of the MICR capture, deposit accounting, cash management, and float processing systems of the respective banks of first deposit designated the plurality of electronic return item notification files received thereby, wherein processing comprises at least one of error checking, and sorting, and retrieval of data from an electronic archive based on information in the electronic return item notification file, wherein the central processing systems are programmed to transmit after processing each of a plurality of the electronic return item notification files directly or indirectly to the respective bank of first deposit designated in the respective electronic return item notification file, wherein for a plurality of the central processing systems some of the electronic return item notification files received thereby designate a different respective bank of first deposit and the respective central processing system is programmed to send each of the respective return notification files to the respective different bank of first deposit designated therein.