State courts in Maine will begin rolling out a new electronic filing and case management system by the end of the year, with plans to have 85% of the electronic documents submitted by filers immediately accessible for public inspection upon acceptance by the court. With some exceptions, all criminal, civil, and traffic infractions records would be publicly available, with some accessible at the courthouse and others through remote means. To protect the privacy rights of Maine citizens, the SJC’s proposed rules require the sealing or impounding of certain court records and the reduction and/or special designation of nonpublic cases, documents and information. The SJC intends to rely almost entirely on individual filers to ensure compliance.
