Electronic court filing (ECF), or e-filing, is the automated transmission of
legal document
Legal instrument is a legal term of art that is used for any formally executed written document that can be formally attributed to its author, records and formally expresses a legally enforceable act, process, or contractual duty, obligation, o ...
s from an attorney, party, or self-represented litigant to a court, from a court to an attorney, and from an attorney or other user to another attorney or other user of legal documents.http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/legalxml-courtfiling/charter.php LegalXML Electronic Court Filing Technical Committee Charter
Technical standards
The LegalXML Electronic Court Filing Technical Committee, a subcommittee of
OASIS
In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentMetadata
Metadata (or metainformation) is "data that provides information about other data", but not the content of the data itself, such as the text of a message or the image itself. There are many distinct types of metadata, including:
* Descriptive ...
These
XML
Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup language and file format for storing, transmitting, and reconstructing data. It defines a set of rules for encoding electronic document, documents in a format that is both human-readable and Machine-r ...
-based standards support the implementation of electronic court filing but they do not define court policies. In 2003, the
National Center for State Courts
The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) is an independent, non-profit organization focused on improving the administration of justice in the United States and around the world. Its efforts are directed by a 27-member board of directors and th ...
* LegalXML:
* ECF 1.0: March 22, 2000
* ECF 1.1: July 7, 2002
* ECF 3.0: November 11, 2005
** ECF 3.01: April 25, 2006
* ECF 3.1: December 4, 2007
* ECF 4.0: October 8, 2008
LegalXML
* Collaboration on nonproprietary standards for the legal community
* Merged with OASIS in March 2002.
ECF 1.0
ECF 1.1
This version was approved by the NCSC Joint Technology Committee as a recommended standard in 2002.
ECF 2.0
This version number was skipped in order to create a linkage between
GJXDM
The Global Justice XML Data Model (GJXDM or Global JXDM) is a data reference model for the exchange of information within the justice and public safety communities. The Global JXDM is a product of the Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative ...
3.0.
ECF 3.0
* Leverage new and emerging standards
** Volcabularies
*** GJXDM
*** UBL
** Web services
*** W3C
*** OASIS
*** WS-I
* Use of
XML schemas
An XML schema is a description of a type of Extensible Markup Language, XML document, typically expressed in terms of constraints on the structure and content of documents of that type, above and beyond the basic syntactical constraints imposed b ...
rather than DTD
* Supports ''Standards for Electronic Filing Processes (Technical and Business Approaches)'' approved in 2003.
ECF 4.0
* Conforms with
NIEM
NIEMOpen (), frequently referred to as NIEM, originated as an XML-based information exchange framework from the United States, but has transitioned to an OASIS Open Project. This initiative formalizes NIEM's designation as an official standard i ...
Implementation assistance
In an effort to promote implementation of the ECF 4.0 specification, the OASIS LegalXML ECF committee developed a "quick start guide", the ''7 Steps to Electronic Filing with Electronic Court Filing 4.0''. The guide provides information on the following topics:
* Standardize integration methods in an e-filing implementation with XML
* Integrate with any potential e-filing service provider or share e-filing data between systems or partners
* Set up a single method of processing data related to e-filing
* Find out how to implement legal service in an e-filing application
Th LegalXML Electronic Court Filing Technical Committee serves as the primary source of documentation and support.
See also
*
OASIS
In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentLegalXML
*
GJXDM
The Global Justice XML Data Model (GJXDM or Global JXDM) is a data reference model for the exchange of information within the justice and public safety communities. The Global JXDM is a product of the Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative ...
, the Global Justice XML Data Model
*
National Information Exchange Model
NIEMOpen (), frequently referred to as NIEM, originated as an XML-based information exchange framework from the United States, but has transitioned to an OASIS Open Project. This initiative formalizes NIEM's designation as an official standard i ...
National Center for State Courts
The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) is an independent, non-profit organization focused on improving the administration of justice in the United States and around the world. Its efforts are directed by a 27-member board of directors and th ...