Track 1: Taking the Bench to the "Next Level" - Utilizing Available Tools to Move from "Less Paper" Toward the Goal of Being "Paperless"
Tuesday, September 22, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Location: Auditorium 1
Presenters: Hon. Rick Zerr, Christy Blakemore
Track: Tools for the 21st-Century Judge
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You have implemented or are about to implement eFiling and you realize that what you hope would be an “elimination” of paper is really a “reduction” in paper. Court staff from Missouri will describe their efforts, after implementation of a statewide eFiling system, to refine the processes in Court to greatly reduce the number of documents which become paper. Utilizing existing technology we will demonstrate how you can easily transfer documents electronically between court personnel, modify and digitally sign documents on PDF format and greatly reduce the number of documents created and converted to paper, while improving efficiency at the same time.
This session will include a demonstration of Missouri’s eBench and other judicial tools, as well as a discussion on how processing electronic documents has improved case processing from both the judge and clerk perspective. Discussion will include lessons learned by Missouri courts in implementing the use of electronic filing and electronic case records, and the challenges remaining in the effort to “further eliminate” paper. This session is focused toward Courts that have not yet implemented eFiling and those who have implemented eFiling but would not consider the process to be “mature” in their state.
This session will be live streamed.
Session Materials
About the Presenters
Judge Rick Zerr serves as a circuit judge in Saint Charles County, Missouri, completing his 17th year on the bench. Judge Zerr was the presiding judge of the circuit when Saint Charles County became the statewide pilot court for eFiling. He has been a leader in training judges in the use of the eBench application and has been recognized by the Missouri Supreme Court for his role in the implementation of the eFiling system. Judge Zerr continues to hold leadership roles in the statewide implementation and enhancement of the eFiling system and in the development of the next generation of the statewide case management system. He currently serves on the Missouri Court Automation Committee, the Change Control Committee, the Trial Judge Focus Group to the Change Control Committee (chair), the eFiling Rules Committee, the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Policy Committee (chair), and the Change Control Oversight Team. Judge Zerr was born in Saint Charles, Missouri, and is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia and the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville.
Christy Blakemore is the elected circuit clerk of Boone County in Columbia, Missouri. She manages all cases that are filed within one of the five divisions (probate, criminal, civil, family court, traffic/accounting) of the circuit clerk’s office. She has 45 staff members with a bench of 7 associate judges and 11 circuit judges. Ms. Blakemore has 26 years of court experience, 8 as the circuit clerk. Ms. Blakemore is a member of the Missouri Change Control Committee, legislative chair of the Missouri Circuit Clerk’s Association, and a member of the Missouri Association of Counties legislative committee.