eCourts 2018 Preview Podcast

ImageSoft interviewed our own Vice President, Jesse Rutledge for their Paperless Process Podcast earlier this week.  They write:

We had the opportunity to pull Jesse away from his own podcast for a bit of our own “court talk” about all things eCourts 2018, including the hot-button “rebooting justice” discussion, the component model, the evolution of the eCourts conference, and how to join the eCourts conversations even if you can’t attend. This is a can’t-miss episode for anyone with their thumb on the pulse of our nation’s court system.

Click here to navigate to the podcast web page.

Council of Europe adopts first European Ethical Charter on the use of artificial intelligence in judicial systems

In a press release on December 4, 2018:

The European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) of the Council of Europe has adopted the first European text setting out ethical principles relating to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in judicial systems.

The Charter provides a framework of principles that can guide policymakers, legislators and justice professionals when they grapple with the rapid development of AI in national judicial processes.

This and That in Court Technology – November 2018

Microsoft Surface Hub 2

With the “sold out” eCourts 2018 conference upon us, it is time to share news about the Best Legal Apps for 2018, the LegalXML Electronic Court Filing standards, the timing for Public Access to Civil Court Filings, another Judicial analytics tool, using GitHub for law text markup and access, and as you can see in the picture, a new Microsoft Surface Hub system.

Plain Language Forms Implemented by the Abu Dhabi Courts

Abu Dhabi Courthouses

We heard late last month from our friend, Mohamed Hesham Elrafei of the Abu Dhabi Courts about their new initiative with plan language forms and documents.  He writes and credits several contributors to the ideas they used in their new applications.  He writes:

How not to do it: Videoconferencing Edition

I had the great pleasure of participating in a group study meeting on the use of videoconferencing (aka telepresence) in the justice system this past week.  One of our good friends from Texas sent me the following story from the Houston Chronicle newspaper from this past February.  While the issues presented regarding money bail release are worthy of discussion elsewhere, I must comment on the technical setup shown in the accompanying video.

New Secure and Technologically Advanced Courthouse Opened

https://goo.gl/5ymTeK

We learned via the US Federal Courts newsletter and video about the new courthouse that opened in Mobile, Alabama.

The newsletter says:

“A new federal courthouse has been formally unveiled in Mobile, Alabama, featuring improved safety and access for the public and improvements in information technology.

StateTech Magazine Recognizes the Court Technology Bulletin

We are honored to share the news that the Court Technology Bulletin has been included in the “30 Must-Read State and Local IT Blogs 2018”

The article recommends that government IT workers “(F)ollow these blogs to stay current on the latest news and trends for state government, smart cities, first responders, public libraries, courts and more.”

And we agree that there are several interesting blogs listed in the article.

Thanks go out to StateTech Magazine for the recognition. 

E-Filing/Imaging and Large Files

In a recent project, I set a system rule for e-filing file sizes not being bigger than 20-megabytes upload into the document management system. 

Why am I against these “Jumbo” files?  I explain below…

Practical Augmented Reality Appears

Available at Amazon 

We learned via my colleague, and ace support technician, Charlie Sillery along with a press release of the TeamViewer  Pilot augmented reality solution to see and guide people in remote locations to help them fix their problems.

But before we start, here is a PC Magazine article about the difference between virtual reality and augmented reality.  We discuss the later below…

Electronic Archives and Microfilm

While Block Chain, AI, and GDPR are new and exciting, sometimes we need to talk about older technology.  Most of it is paper which has its own set of challenges.  But microfilm has been the court archiving standard since at least the 1950’s in many jurisdictions.  Should it still be used?  If so, can it be made more useful?  We discuss below.