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Legislation to set-up a statewide court e-filing system awaits action in the state House.
The bill package would develop and implement a system for filing and sending court documents using the internet.
It also creates a fund for collecting electronic filing fees.
State Supreme Court Justice David Viviano says the system would be funded by a modest increase in funding fees, but it will be worth the trade-off.
He says people will have the ability to file court documents anywhere, anytime without having to wait in line or paying an additional transaction based fee.
But Pat Clawsen of the Michigan Process Servers Alliance says they oppose the legislation because it doesn’t offer public access on reasonable terms.
He says things like court opinions and dockets should be available for free to the public.
Viviano says the bill package is a step toward a conversation about public access.
The legislation recently passed the Senate.
