E-Filing

The basic process that an electronically-filed document goes through is very much like the process a hand-filed document goes through. You can think of it in three steps: the envelope is the first, with document submission and envelope acceptance and return following.

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Before you would go to the courthouse to file documents, you would get everything together to hand the Clerk. "The Envelope" is simply the digital version of that process you're already used to doing.

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The Envelope is what you ultimately submit to the Clerk.

It is comprised of 4 categories:

(1) Case Information; (2) Party Information; (3) Filings; and (4) Fees.

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Case Information

Case information has the most basic information on the case: what court it's in (District or County); its classification (misdemeanor or felony); the case number; and the court to which it is assigned. The case information should be automatically filled in when you pull up your case. Here is more information about locating your case.​

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Party Information

This category is where you can list all the parties involved in the case. It has party categories of Defendant, Defendant Witness, State, and State Witness. The defendant will be automatically listed as a party, but you may need to go in and add the State as a party as well. This is the category where you can add opposing counsel's email for service.

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Filings

This is the category where you can actually upload the document(s) you're wanting to file. There are several fields in this category, but only some of them are mandatory.

Filing Type: In this field, you have two options - EFile (if you just want to file something with the court or EFile and Serve (if you need to serve the document(s)). This field is mandatory.

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Filing Code: This is where you tell the Clerk what it is you're filing. You have 23 different categories to choose from. Some of the categories are things like answer/response, bond, election as to punishment, motions, proposed orders, and the like. This field is mandatory.

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Filing Description: This is where you put the title of your document. This field is mandatory.

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Client Reference Number: This is for attorneys and firms who assign their clients or cases numbers unique to the firm. This field is not mandatory.

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Comments to the Court: This is where you can write notes to the Clerk. Usually, you can probably leave this field blank, but you can write things like "Thank You" or "This filing is a resubmission of Envelope SSS, filed <date and time>. Please honor the original filing date." This field is not mandatory.

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Courtesy Copies: If there is someone you want to email a copy of the document to, this is where you would enter their email address. This field is not mandatory.

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Lead Document: This is where you actually upload the document(s) you're needing to file. In order to upload your document, first, you click the computer upload button. When you click this button, your computer files will pop up, and you can select the document you want to upload and click "Open." This will download the document into your envelope. You will need to indicate whether the filing contains any sensitive data.

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As you will see later, sometimes you may need to include several documents in one envelope (most likely when you're filing several pre-trial motions at once). If you need to upload more documents, click the "Add Another Filing" button, which is located underneath and to the right of the "Filing Code" field reference above. One more note about your document. You need to make sure that your document is in PDF when you upload it.​

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Service Contacts

When you indicate in "Filings" that you need to "EFile and Serve," another category named "Service Contacts" will pop up. This is where you can select who all will be served with the document.

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Fees

This is a field more relevant to non-criminal cases, where the parties may have to pay a fee associated with the filing. Of course, there are no fees associated with filing documents in a criminal case. Accordingly, even though you have to fill out the fields in this category, you will not actually be charged anything.

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Under "Payment Account" your law office will likely be the only option, so go ahead and select it.

The "Party Responsible for Fees" will likely also only have one option - the Defendant - so go ahead and select his or her name. Remember you should be able to see on the "Total Filing Fee" that the amount to be charged is $0.00. 

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The fact that you are the "Filing Attorney" should already be selected.

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Finally, you have to deal with the "Filer Type." The only choice you will have is "Not Applicable," so go ahead and select that.

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Any time you make a change in any of these categories you should click "Save Changes."

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Once you've uploaded everything and clicked all the "Save Changes" buttons, you are ready to either save your envelope as a draft or see a summary of your envelope. If you click "Save as Draft" at the bottom of the page, your envelope will not be filed. If you are ready to file your envelope, click "Summary" at the bottom of the page.

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The summary page will give you a review of all the information and documents you have put into your envelope. If you see any errors, click the "Back" button at the bottom of the page. That will allow you to edit anything on the envelope development page. If everything looks good, click "Submit" and give yourself a pat on the back.