On-Line Forms Signal End to Paper Trail

The end to the paper trail is in sight, at least when it comes to gathering statistical information from the federal courts. It's the end to each court sending in its statistics to the Administrative Office on paper forms, to the keying and re-keying of data, and to the time-consuming verification of totals. As of this month, nine of the paper forms used by the courts to send data to the AO have been replaced by on-line electronic versions that can be sent over the Judiciary's intranet with a click of a button.

Although the forms are already on-line, moving the courts to paperless data collection will be a gradual process. This month, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia and the District Court and the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Columbia are sending in their statistics electronically.

The shift to on-line forms and submission of data became feasible with the federal courts' accessibility to their own intranet, the J-Net, which became a viable communications mechanism only within the last few years.

The courts send a staggering mass of statistics to the AO on a daily, monthly, quarterly, and annual basis. All of the statistics on cases commenced, terminated, and pending; on sources of appeals, median time intervals, and nature of suit or offense; on appeals terminated on the merits, by procedural judgments, or filed under the sentencing guidelines--and much more--are collected and condensed into the charts of the annual Judicial Business of the U.S. Courts (www.uscourts.gov/judbususc/judbus.html) and other statistical publications.

In the past, statistics have been typed on forms by court personnel and sent by mail or fax to the AO, where staff in the Statistics Division re-entered the data into a computer from an estimated 24,325 forms annually. At one time, the Statistics Division employed more than 20 full-time employees whose primary function was to enter data by hand. The paper won't vanish overnight but when all of the courts send data exclusively on the electronic forms over the intranet, the Judiciary will have eliminated all significant paper reporting, leaving just .6 percent of statistics still to be submitted on paper.

The beauty of the electronic submission of data, of course, is improved accuracy. The electronic forms have built-in protections against leaving blanks, or for certain errors, such as totaling the number of cases incorrectly. There are validity edits. For example, a user would be unable to enter a termination date that's before the filing date.

While the electronic forms are good news for the AO, the courts should appreciate not only the convenience of the on-line forms and ease of submission of data, but also the money saved when mailing and faxing are eliminated. Also, the information is secure when courts send their statistical forms over the Judiciary's intranet.

Moving to the paperless state will be an on-going process. But the availability of on-line forms and the on-line submission of statistics reflects the overall automation of functions throughout the courts.

Fifth Circuit First to Gauge Emergency Preparedness

"We put this workshop together at the request of the Fifth Circuit Judicial Council," said Chief Judge Carolyn Dineen King (5th Cir.), "to continue and to strengthen the process of equipping ourselves to identify and deal with events challenging the physical integrity and operations of our buildings and the safety of our employees and visitors to our buildings."

The two-day meeting was designed for chief judges of district and bankruptcy courts, and their clerks and designated staff. It focussed on emergency preparedness plans and security issues. The first half of the meeting featured experts who spoke on the nature of security problems the courts may face, including terrorism and cyber attacks; chemical, biological and bomb threats; and the potential of natural disasters. The second part of the program looked at plans and procedures to deal with those threats.

Assistant Commissioner of the Federal Protective Service, Wendell C. Shingler, at the podium, Chief Judge Carolyn Dineen King (5th Cir.) (standing) and Fifth Circuit Circuit Executive Greg Nussel (seated) were among the participants at the Circuit's recent emergency preparedness meeting.

The momentum for the meeting began with a court-wide memo from the Administrative Office on Emergency Preparedness in the Judiciary. The memo, released in October, 2001, provides guidance and describes available resources to assist courts in addressing emergency preparedness. "The memo recommended," said William Lehman, head of the Judiciary Emergency Preparedness Office at the AO, "that all court units develop an up-to-date and comprehensive Occupant Emergency Program, and a Continuity of Operations Plan, and build relationships with those local FEMA and law enforcement officials who would assist the courts in a disaster."

The Fifth Circuit is the first of the circuits to initiate such an intensive examination of its readiness in the face of a disaster. As Judge King pointed out at the meeting, "The practical and moral responsibility for these buildings and their occupants lies with us."