Feb. 1, 2017 – The Wisconsin Court System recently released an enhancement to its eFile system that makes the process more efficient for law office staff – and the lawyers they work for. This new feature, File Prep, gives paralegals, legal secretaries, and local government staff the ability to prepare eFilings using eCourts accounts geared specifically to their needs, rather than by logging in via accounts associated with their attorneys. These new eCourts accounts allow staff, who may be assisting one or more lawyers, to prepare new case filings and additional documents on existing cases.

File Prep offers the following options:

• Support staff can design templates with their needs in mind, reducing mundane data entry and accelerating the filing process.

• Once authorized, support staff can access all of the documents available to the attorney on their My Cases screen.

• An In Progress page helps track filings in preparation that haven't yet been sent to an attorney for submission to the circuit courts. Filings visible in this queue are only accessible to the person preparing them, not to other support staff or attorneys.

Creating a File Prep eCourts account and/or granting access for File Prep is straightforward. The eFiling website offers tutorials with step-by-step instructions to help you begin using this feature.

Mandatory Criminal E-filing Starts March 1

E-filing for criminal cases is mandatory on March 1, 2017, for all counties where mandatory e-filing is already in place. As e-filing is implemented in the remaining counties this year, criminal e-filing will become mandatory at the same time. Until March 1, counties with mandatory e-filing may decide whether to offer voluntary criminal e-filing as well.

The following 22 counties are currently participating in voluntary criminal e-filing: Adams, Ashland, Barron, Chippewa, Clark, Columbia, Dodge, Dunn, Florence, Iowa, Jefferson, Juneau, La Crosse, Oneida, Ozaukee, Pierce, Racine, Richland, Rusk, Vernon, Waukesha, and Waupaca.

Who's E-filing Near You?

Mandatory e-filing for civil, family, paternity, and small claims cases has been rolled out to almost half of Wisconsin counties since June 1, 2016, with 12 more scheduled for the next few months:

• Marquette – Feb. 1, 2017
• Waushara – Feb. 1, 2017
• Winnebago – Feb. 1, 2017
• Calumet – Feb. 15, 2017
• Eau Claire – Feb. 15, 2017
• Portage – Feb. 15, 2017
• Bayfield – March 1, 2017
• Manitowoc – March 1, 2017
• Washington – March 1, 2017
• Buffalo – March 15, 2017
• Fond du Lac – March 15, 2017
• Pepin – March 15, 2017

For a comprehensive list of counties planning implementations, visit our participating counties webpage.

Probate E-filing Pilot

E-filing for formal and informal probate of estates currently is being piloted in Ashland and Ozaukee counties. There are plans to expand probate e-filing to additional counties in the first quarter of 2017. Please stay tuned for more information as a rollout plan solidifies.

Help is Available

If you have questions along the way, call CCAP support staff at (800) 462-8843, visit eFiling support on wicourts.gov, or email eFileSupport@wicourts.gov. You can also follow eFiling news on Twitter.