Tag Archives: Odyssey eFileAndServe

eFile and Serve: Answers to FAQ and Webinar Recording

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ICYMI, a recording of the Oregon Judicial Department (OJD) eFile & Serve webinar is available on YouTube. The webinar covered:

  • File & Serve upgrade
  • eSignatures by nonfilers
  • Filer certifications and retention requirements
  • eFiling exhibits for remote trials/hearings
    • Filing requirements
    • Bookmarking a PDF
    • Creating a linked index
  • eFiling pointers
  • Resources for technical support and questions

View the slides on my post from April 13 or access a downloadable PDF here.

Q & A Session – eFile & Serve

Here are the answers and questions from the program: 

Thanks again to OJD Assistant General Counsel Sam Dupree for doing this! Download a PDF of the Q & A here.

All Rights Reserved 2020 Beverly Michaelis

eFile and Serve Webinar from OJD

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Below are the slides from the eFile & Serve webinar offered by the Oregon Judicial Department (OJD) last week. This webinar covers the following:

  • File & Serve upgrade
  • eSignatures by nonfilers
  • Filer certifications and retention requirements
  • eFiling exhibits for remote trials/hearings
    • Filing requirements
    • Bookmarking a PDF
    • Creating a linked index
  • eFiling pointers
  • Resources for technical support and questions

Did you miss the OJD webinars? Recordings will be available shortly.

Many thanks to Sam Dupree for doing this! A downloadable PDF of the slides may be found here.

All Rights Reserved 2020 Beverly Michaelis

The Case for Oregon eService

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In the next issue of the Oregon State Bar Bulletin, I argue in favor of Oregon’s electronic service system – the “AndServe” of OJD eFileAndServe. Here are a few key excerpts modified for posting purposes.

State of the Art

OJD eFileAndServe is state of the art. When a document is filed, marked for service and accepted at the court, the system serves the selected service contacts by email. Included in the message is a hyperlink to the filed document. Filers receive proof of service via a service receipt/confirmation of filing acceptance and may also view the date and time a filing was opened by a service contact in the case.

Transmission of the email by the electronic filing system to selected service contacts constitutes service. Electronic service is complete when the system sends the email to the selected service contacts. UTCR 21.100(4) and (5).

Know the Rules! Written Consent to eService is Not Required

While using eService isn’t mandatory, making yourself available for eService is. UTCR 21.100(2)(a) requires entry of service contact information at the time of a filer’s first electronic filing in an action. Filers who appear in a case by eFiling documents which are accepted by the court are deemed to consent to electronic service. UTCR 21.100(1)(a). The only exception: documents that require personal service or service under ORCP 7. A written consent agreement between the parties is not required, a belief that some have promoted.

If you discover that an opponent has failed to enter his or her service contact information, make a phone call, write an email or send a letter. Keep in mind that approximately one-fifth of all respondents to a 2017 eCourt survey reported being unaware of the service contact requirements.

It Really is that Simple!

eService is accomplished in four easy steps:

  • Login to the system. From the “Filing Type” dropdown, select “eFileAndServe.”
  • Complete the filing details and save changes.
  • Select the parties you wish to serve from the Service Contacts box section.
  • Complete other data entry as needed and submit your filing.

The only difference between using eFile – which is mandatory for all Oregon lawyers – and eFileAndServe is a mouse click at login and selecting your service contacts. It really is that simple.

Prefer Service by Email?

There are important limitations on service by email – some practical, some rule-based. The forthcoming article contains a full discussion. But what about the fact that most lawyers serving by email are doing so contemporaneously with their filing submission? Does this matter?

When service is contemporaneous with filing, it means the other side is receiving a document that has not yet been accepted by the court. If acceptance is forthcoming, no harm no foul. If the document is rejected, the process must start over and a request for relation-back may be necessary.

A Better Approach

eService offers distinct advantages over service by email. Rather than sending large email attachments, lawyers who want to share information about a filing can forward the service receipt/confirmation of filing acceptance or copy the document hyperlink into a new message. This saves server space, provides proof of eFiling and eService, reduces the amount of material that must be saved to the client file and assures that parties are communicating only about accepted court filings. Document hyperlinks are active for 45 days and available 24/7 online. When retrieved, the link returns the official date-stamped document in the court register. These are just some of the features that make switching to eService worthwhile.

All Rights Reserved – 2018 – Beverly Michaelis

Asked and Answered: Oregon eService Questions

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Last Wednesday’s Oregon eService CLE generated a lively discussion and some interesting questions. Here are a few that might interest you:

What is my date of filing?

  • The court considers a document submitted for an electronic filing when the electronic filing system receives the document.
  • If the court accepts the document for filing, the date and time of filing entered in the register relate back to the date and time the electronic filing system received the document. When the court accepts the document, the electronic filing system will affix the date and time of submission on the document.

For example: Assume you have a statute of limitations that runs on Wednesday, June 6, 2018.  You eFile on Wednesday, June 6, 2018.  Your document is received by the system on Wednesday, June 6, 2018.  On Monday, June 11, 2018 the court clerk reviews your filing and ACCEPTS it.  Your filing date is June 6, 2018.  The delay in processing your filing is disregarded.  Thanks to relation back, your filing is timely under UTCR 21.080(3)-(4).

Where do I find the entry date in the Register of Actions?

When interpreting the Register of Actions, refer to UTCR 21.060(3):

The following apply whether or not a document is electronically filed with the court:

(a) For the purpose of ORS 7.020(1) and (2), the date that a document was filed displays in the date column of the register of actions for the case in the court’s electronic case management system.

(b) For the purpose of ORS 7.020(2), entry occurs on the date an event is created in the register of actions. (Emphasis supplied.)

The entry date is what matters.  Always refer to the CREATED DATE field.

How does the 3-day rule in ORCP 10 apply to eCourt cases?

Thanks to Donna Van Eaton, paralegal extraordinaire with the Law Offices of Melinda M. Brown, we know that nothing has changed.

The 3-day count should start on the date your document was eFiled or submitted, i.e., the date on your Certificate of Service.  Here is the background:

ORCP 10 was last updated by the Council on Court Procedures (CCP) in 2014. The first draft of the amended rule did not refer to electronic service (January 29, 2014).  Five versions later, it was explicitly added (September 6, 2014).  The drafts and final amended rule are available to view here.

The CCP staff comments accompanying this change point out the intention – which was to treat all forms of service equally and continue current practices:

The amendment of section C continues the allowance of three additional days in computing the time in which to respond following service of a document by mail or by facsimile service without the intention to change the previous practice under Rule 9 F (facsimile service) and this section.  The same three-day extension is now made applicable to documents served by e‐mail and by the newly available electronic service, providing equal treatment of these forms of service and specifying that treatment in one provision.  The description of the additional time in section C is amended to improve clarity without the intention to change the rule’s meaning or operation.  With the establishment of eCourt, the word “paper,” appearing twice in section C, is replaced with “document.”

The 3-day computation starts on the date of submission (date of filing), not the court clerk’s acceptance date.  Keep in mind the goal of the amendment: to equalize the methods of service, preserve operation of the rule, and maintain existing practices. Historically, the 3-day extension provided by ORCP 10 was meant to compensate for possible delays when serving by mail. Extending the same benefit to service by email, fax, or eService may not be necessary, but the rule provides for it explicitly.

Withdrawing as attorney of record in the eCourt era

If you withdraw or the party you represent is dismissed from an action, UTCR 21.100(2)(a) states you “must remove (your) name and service email address as a designated service contact for a party.”  Obtaining a court order permitting your withdrawal will not automatically remove you as a service contact in the Odyssey eFileandServe system.

If you are unsure how to remove yourself as a service contact, get in touch withTyler Technologies:

If you weren’t able to attend Oregon eService, a copy of the program is available to purchase here at a cost of $25 (same as the registration fee).  Your purchase includes a video recording, audio recording, program and supplemental materials, and answers to poll questions. Apply for MCLE credit of 1.25 PS/general MCLE credits by submitting the providing MCLE 6 form.

All Rights Reserved – Beverly Michaelis – 2018

With a special thank you Donna Van Eaton at the Law Offices of Melinda M. Brown.  As Stacy D. Fawver said, “right on.”