The Supreme Court has issued a Notice to the Bar, available here, that reveals the schedule for the introduction of electronic filing in the Appellate Division. Criminal appeals and motions filed by the Office of the Public Defender, the Office of the Attorney General, and County Prosecutors will be the first to go electronic, in “Spring 2013,” a season that is already upon us. Next, in “Summer 2013,” will be civil appeals and motions filed by the Public Defender, the Attorney General, and the Law Guardian. In “Late Summer 2013,” any civil or criminal appeals and any motions filed by any attorney with a collateral (JACS) account will go electronic, followed, in “Fall 2013,” by any appeals and motions filed by any attorney..
The Notice states, twice, that participation is voluntary. However, electronic filing, which has been in effect for a number of years in federal trial and appellate courts, will save trees and costs to clients and has been long-awaited by many state court practitioners and parties.