- Trial Court Records Manual REVISED JANUARY 1, 2020 Trial Court Records Manual Revised January 1, 2020 CONTENTS 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................1 1.1 Background ................................................................................................................. 2 1.2 Purpose of Records Management ............................................................................... 3 1.3 Purpose of the Manual ................................................................................................ 5 1.4 Life Cycle of a Record ................................................................................................. 5 1.5 Key Definitions ............................................................................................................ 7 2. Statutes and Rules of Court Governing Trial Court Records Management ..................................................................................................8 2.1 California Government Code ....................................................................................... 8 2.1.1 Signatures on Electronically Created Court Documents ................................. 8 2.2 California Rules of Court ............................................................................................. 8 3. Records Management Administration...................................................... 10 3.1 Application of Standards ........................................................................................... 10 3.2 Responsibility for Effective Records Management .................................................... 10 3.3 Duties and Responsibilities of Records Managers .................................................... 10 4. Creation, Filing, and Retrieval of Court Records .................................... 12 4.1 Court Record Creation Process ................................................................................ 12 4.1.1 Filing Papers in Court: Methods of Filing ....................................................... 12 4.1.2 Filing Papers in Court: Form and Format Requirements ............................... 19 4.1.3 Filing Papers in Court: Role of Civil Fees and Fee Waivers .......................... 20 4.2 Numbering Schematic for Court Records .................................................................. 22 4.3 Filing Systems for Court Records Maintained in Paper Format ................................ 23 4.3.1 Numerical Filing Systems by Case Numbers ................................................ 23 4.3.2 Alphanumeric Filing Systems by Case Numbers .......................................... 24 4.3.3 Terminal Digit Filing Systems by Case Numbers .......................................... 24 4.4 Electronic Format Filing Protocols ............................................................................. 25 4.4.1 E-Filing Overview .......................................................................................... 25 4.5 Court Record Location Tracking ................................................................................ 26 4.5.1 Paper Record Tracking .................................................................................. 26 4.5.2 Electronic File Tracking and Security ............................................................ 28 5. Record Classification ................................................................................. 29 5.1 Standard Record Classifications ............................................................................... 29 5.1.1 Case Record Classification ........................................................................... 29 5.1.2 Prefiled Records ............................................................................................ 32 5.1.3 Lodged Records ............................................................................................ 32 i 5.1.4 Exhibits .......................................................................................................... 32 5.1.5 Juror Records ................................................................................................ 32 5.2 Confidential and Sealed Records ............................................................................. 32 5.3 Subpoenaed Records and Documents ..................................................................... 33 6. Storage, Maintenance, and Electronic Signing of Records ................... 34 6.1 Standards for Paper and Electronic Records ............................................................ 34 6.1.1 Standards for Paper Records Storage Facilities ........................................... 34 6.1.2 Standards for Microfilm .................................................................................. 35 6.1.3 Standards for Electronic Records .................................................................. 36 6.1.3.1 Process Overview ........................................................................... 37 6.1.3.2 File Formats .................................................................................... 38 6.1.3.3 Scanning and Digitizing .................................................................. 41 6.1.3.4 Public Access and Reproduction ................................................... 46 6.1.3.5 Confidential and Sealed Records .................................................. 47 6.1.3.6 Integrity and Security of Records ................................................... 48 6.1.3.7 Technology Refresh ........................................................................ 49 6.1.3.8 Data Backup and Storage ............................................................... 50 6.1.3.9 Retention and Destruction .............................................................. 53 6.1.3.10 References ..................................................................................... 54 6.2 Electronic Signatures: Standards and Guidelines ..................................................... 55 6.2.1 Electronic Signatures on Court-Created Records ......................................... 55 6.2.2 Electronic Signatures on Documents Submitted to the Courts ...................... 60 6.2.3 Signatures on Scanned Documents .............................................................. 66 7. Exhibits Management ................................................................................ 67 7.1 Exhibits in Civil Cases ............................................................................................... 67 7.2 Exhibits in Criminal Cases…………………… ....................................................... ….68 7.2.1 Dangerous and Biohazardous Exhibits ......................................................... 68 7.2.1.1 Exhibits that Pose a Security, Storage, or Safety Problem ............ 68 7.2.1.2 Exhibits That Are Toxic ................................................................... 68 7.2.1.3 Dangerous or Deadly Weapons, Narcotics or Poisonous Drugs, Explosives, or Any Property the Possession of Which Is Prohibited by Law and Biological Material for DNA Testing ............ 69 7.2.2 Unclaimed Exhibits of Money or Currency or Other Property, and Photographs of Minors Found to Be Harmful Matter .................................... 70 7.2.2.1 Unclaimed Exhibits of Money or Currency ...................................... 70 7.2.2.2 Unclaimed Exhibits of Other Property ............................................. 70 7.2.2.3 Exhibits That Are Photographs of Minors Found to Be Harmful Matter .............................................................................................. 71 7.2.3 Death Penalty Exhibits .................................................................................. 71 ii 8. Public Calendars, Indexes, and Registers of Action: Minimum Standards .................................................................................. 72 8.1 Minimum Content for Electronically Accessible Court Calendars, Indexes, and Registers of Action ............................................................................................. 72 8.2 Information that Must Be Excluded from Electronically Accessible Court Calendars, Indexes, and Registers of Action ............................................................ 73 9. Disaster Recovery Planning and Procedures ......................................... 75 9.1 Planning for a Disaster .............................................................................................. 75 9.2 Response to Disasters .............................................................................................. 75 9.3 Disaster Recovery ..................................................................................................... 76 10. Public Access to Court Records ............................................................... 78 10.1 Access to Electronic Court Records .......................................................................... 78 10.2 Remote Access Allowed in High-Profile Criminal Cases ........................................... 79 10.3 Confidential and Sealed Records .............................................................................. 80 10.3.1 Confidential Records ..................................................................................... 80 10.3.2 Sealed Records ............................................................................................. 92 10.4 Judicial Administrative Records ...............................................................................