eCourts launches in Western North Carolina
As planned, Western North Carolina courts became fully digital on July 22. North Carolina Judicial Branch photo
Members of the public interested in Western North Carolina court cases now have better access than ever to criminal and civil files.
On July 22, the new eCourts system officially rolled out in the state’s 11 westernmost counties as part of the fifth “track” to change over to the digital system. Before the rollout, a person would have to go to the courthouse, and in most cases, a clerk would have to retrieve a document for them, which could result in a person having to spend some serious time and money, especially if the file was at a courthouse in another county.
In an April release from the North Carolina Judicial Branch, it’s noted that the eCourts applications had already accepted over 1 million files and saved more than 3 million pieces of paper. Historically, roughly 30 million pieces of paper were added to court files each year in North Carolina, the release noted.
While there have been some issues with the rollout of eCourts in other counties earlier on in the process, by the time Track 4 was rolled out in late April, most of the wrinkles had been ironed out. All the same, folks in the 11 track-5 counties — Polk, Buncombe, Henderson, Transylvania, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, Swain, Graham, Clay and Cherokee — were not taking any risks.
In a Smoky Mountain News story earlier this month, Chief District Court Judge Roy Wijewickrama was quick to point out all that those affiliated with the court system in the judicial district made up of the state’s seven westernmost counties have done to prepare. To begin with, all stakeholders went through extensive training on how to use the system. A May 23 memo sent from NCAOC director Ryan S. Boyce to the legal community provided links for training resources to allow everyone — including attorneys, paralegals, hospital filers, judges, clerks and law enforcement — the chance to prepare for the upcoming transition to the digital system.
“We’ve conferred with these other clerks and judges about lessons learned and what works best,” Wijewickrama said. “From speaking with other chief district court judges in the state, the rollout has gone more and more smoothly each time.”
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In addition, stakeholders have been in multiple online meetings every week since March. For elected clerks of superior court like Hunter Plemmons in Haywood County, it’s been one training with key stakeholders in the district, one meeting with his fellow elected clerks and then one with all stakeholders, plus representatives from NCAOC. That’s three in-depth meetings every week for months.
“Our whole district decided early on that we’re going to go at this from an optimistic standpoint and learn it the best we can and do what we can to make it a success,” Plemmons said in the SMN story earlier this month. “From what I understand from AOC and other districts, the time leading up to going live has gone better for us.”
In a July 23 interview with SMN, Plemmons said the rollout is going well, perhaps even better than expected. However, he also pointed out that there is still plenty of work he and his staff — along with clerk’s offices in the other 10 counties — have to do.
“There’s continuous training, and we have to generate reports on a daily, weekly and monthly basis to ensure the right actions and security measures are being taken,” Plemmons said.
Now that eCourts is operational, it allows not only easier, cheaper access to the courts by members of the public, but as Wijewickrama noted, the big transition will help those who spend their days working in the courtroom, as well.
“I’m holding court like it’s 1982, but it’s not 1982,” he said. “We’re now coming into the 21st century.”
Specifically, attorneys will be able to file documents remotely, and law enforcement agencies will be integrated into the system, meaning warrants and citations can be processed easily through the system. In addition, judges will be able to e-sign certain documents like emergency ex parte orders that in the past required them to put ink to paper, sometimes late at night.
While Plemmons said the system seems to be working well early on, the public and attorneys will need to remain patient as his staff continues to learn the ins and outs as they gain experience on the system.
“There will be a learning curve and growing pains, but it’ll be better in the long run for the courts and the public,” he said. “I ask the public to be patient with the rollout as we work through this. In the long run, this is going to be a really good thing for the public’s access to justice.”
