PLANO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tyler Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: TYL) today announced that eFileTexas™ — Texas’ electronic court filing system, which went live in all 254 Texas counties more than nine months ahead of schedule — has been enhanced with a free tool that helps self-represented litigants more easily access and work within the justice system. eFileTexas, developed and managed by Tyler, is the largest mandatory electronic court filing system in the U.S.
The new tool—called eFileTexas SelfHelp™ — is free to the courts and Texas residents. The pilot project was kicked off in March 2015, and was created because the state recognized the challenges associated with the increasing number of residents representing themselves in court. eFileTexas SelfHelp is powered by Tyler’s Odyssey Guide & File™ solution. It leverages the eFileTexas system and allows courts and legal aid organizations to develop Web-based interviews and provide relevant, informative content to help self-represented litigants with court filings. This results in a reduction of erroneous filings as well as staff time answering pro se questions.
eFileTexas SelfHelp was developed with support from Collin County, Williamson County, Travis County, Fort Bend County, Lone Star Legal Aid and the Texas Legal Services Center. Eleven counties in Texas are now live on eFileTexas SelfHelp.
As a cloud-based solution, self-guided interviews are published and accessed from a court’s website, providing flexibility for self-represented litigants to complete the interview anytime, anywhere. Interviews available include uncontested divorce, name change for an adult, small claims, evictions, repair and remedy, and occupational driver’s license. An additional 100 forms are planned for rollout over the next two years in partnership with Lone Star Legal Aid and TexasLawHelp. eFileTexas SelfHelp interviews can be accessed from various Texas county websites and at www.TexasLawHelp.org.
In November 2012, the Texas Judiciary announced a plan to develop and deploy eFileTexas. This initiative was targeted for completion in July 2016 for all 254 Texas counties, but eFileTexas became fully operational in all of the state’s counties more than nine months ahead of schedule.
By simplifying access to public information and providing all relevant court participants with immediate access to necessary documentation, eFileTexas creates greater efficiency and effectiveness of the use of taxpayer dollars. This entirely electronic platform helps courts and the legal community print 30 million fewer sheets of paper annually, create greater document security in the event of a disaster, and reduce mailing and storage costs.
“Every branch of Texas government, particularly the Judiciary, is committed to applying technology that enables everyone, regardless of means, to access our justice system. With eFileTexas operational statewide, our 21st century state now has a 21st century Judiciary,” said Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, who has noted that the practice of law has changed over time, and that change is necessary to close the justice gap. “Many people and entities played key roles in the success of our e-filing project, which would not have happened without the expertise of and partnership with Tyler Technologies. Together, we launched a system that benefits everyone involved with the legal process.”
Tyler received a 2015 Builders of Justice award from Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, recognizing the company’s significant work in developing eFileTexas and its new eFileTexas SelfHelp solution. By developing a solution that is fully accessible 24 hours a day, every day of the week from any Internet accessible location, Tyler delivers a system that increases transparency and court availability to attorneys, litigants and county staff. More than 115,000 users from the legal community are registered and trained on eFileTexas. Thousands of court staff members use the system daily, and Tyler expects the number of users to continue to rise as self-represented litigants access these electronic legal services.
“The success of eFileTexas sparked plans to enhance access to justice for people who choose to execute their right of self-representation, and eFileTexas SelfHelp walks them through the steps to do so,” said Jeff Puckett, president of Tyler Technologies’ Courts & Justice Division. “Tyler looks forward to continued collaboration with the Texas Judiciary, the Texas Office of Court Administration, the Judicial Committee on Information Technology, and county and district clerks to develop additional solutions to complement Texas’ extraordinary judicial system.”
About Tyler Technologies, Inc.
Tyler Technologies (NYSE: TYL) is a leading provider of end-to-end information management solutions and services for local governments. Tyler partners with clients to empower the public sector — cities, counties, schools and other government entities — to become more efficient, more accessible and more responsive to the needs of citizens. Tyler’s client base includes more than 14,000 local government offices in all 50 states, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and other international locations. Forbes has named Tyler one of “America’s Best Small Companies” eight times and the company has been included six times on the Barron’s 400 Index, a measure of the most promising companies in America. More information about Tyler Technologies, headquartered in Plano, Texas, can be found at www.tylertech.com.
