Most
courts
these
days
offer
electronic
filing
systems
by
which
attorneys
can
file
and
view
litigation
papers
through
the
internet. This
is
a
huge
improvement
from
the
systems
that
I
needed
to
endure
during
the
early
years
of
my
career
which
required
in-person
filing
at
courthouses. However,
the
speed
of
e-filing
systems
also
makes
it
easy
for
attorneys
to
make
mistakes
while
using
such
systems. It
is
often
extremely
difficult
to
correct
mistakes
since
this
usually
involves
filing
a
motion
or
seeking
some
other
kind
of
court
approval. However,
courts
should
make
it
easier
to
fix
e-filing
mistakes,
especially
when
there
is
no
objection
by
any
party.
E-filing
is
one
of
the
most
stressful
parts
of
my
law
practice. When
I
need
to
e-file
papers,
I
usually
turn
off
my
phone,
minimize
distractions,
and
focus
entirely
on
the
task
at
hand
to
ensure
that
mistakes
are
not
made. In
order
to
successfully
e-file
documents,
an
attorney
or
support
staff
needs
to
navigate
to
the
right
case,
choose
the
correct
filing
type,
upload
documents,
write
appropriate
notes
about
the
documents,
and
complete
other
tasks
to
ensure
that
filings
are
submitted
properly. If
everything
is
handled
correctly,
the
court
will
accept
the
documents,
and
usually,
the
other
attorneys
to
a
case
will
receive
an
email
notifying
them
of
the
filing.
There
are
a
few
common
errors
that
attorneys
and
staff
make
during
the
e-filing
process. Sometimes,
people
file
documents
to
the
wrong
case. This
might
seem
like
an
easy
mistake
to
avoid,
but
in
some
mass
torts
cases
and
in
other
matters
in
which
an
attorney
or
support
staff
needs
to
file
many
documents
to
numerous
matters,
this
is
an
easy
mistake
to
make.
Another
common
mistake
is
when
the
PDF
document
to
be
uploaded
has
an
issue
that
was
not
caught
by
the
attorney.
For
instance,
I
once
had
to
file
an
answer
in
a
case,
and
I
scanned
documents
to
be
used
for
the
filing. Unbeknownst
to
me,
some
of
the
pages
got
scanned
out
of
order,
so
the
PDF
jumped
around
a
bit. I
accidentally
filed
the
PDF
with
the
errors
in
it,
and
I
almost
immediately
recognized
my
mistake. Fortunately
for
me,
litigants
can
usually
amend
a
pleading
once
shortly
after
the
initial
filing
without
asking
for
court
permission,
so
I
filed
an
amended
answer
with
a
corrected
PDF
later
that
day.
One
time,
I
saw
an
attorney
upload
a
deposition
transcript
that
included
the
lawyer’s
notes
about
the
deposition
in
the
margins. This
lawyer
presumably
made
this
mistake
since
he
did
not
thoroughly
review
the
PDF
before
filing.
Perhaps
the
biggest
mistake
attorneys
and
staff
make
with
e-filing
concerns
redacting
confidential
information
court
rules
require
attorneys
to
redact. One
time,
our
firm
had
to
e-file
a
document
that
contained
confidential
information. We
redacted
some
information
on
the
page,
but
we
did
not
redact
a
given
number
since
it
was
mislabeled,
and
we
did
not
see
the
designation
for
this
number
on
the
list
of
confidential
information
that
needed
to
be
redacted.
We
later
got
a
call
from
an
adversary
telling
us
that
this
was
in
fact
an
employee
identification
number
that
was
supposed
to
be
redacted
under
court
rules. Our
adversary
asked
that
we
substitute
the
document
for
a
redacted
version
and
that
he
would
not
object
to
our
action.
We
called
the
clerk
about
this
error
hoping
the
clerk
would
just
let
us
substitute
the
document
for
a
redacted
copy. However,
the
clerk
told
us
we
would
have
to
make
an
application
with
the
court
about
substituting
the
document
even
though
our
adversary
consented. It
took
hours
to
get
the
paperwork
together
even
it
would
not
prejudice
anyone
to
just
allow
the
documents
to
be
changed.
Some
courts
have
implemented
systems
to
assist
lawyers
with
e-filing,
such
as
notifying
lawyers
if
a
document
potentially
has
sensitive
information
that
may
need
to
be
redacted.
However,
many
courts
still
require
burdensome
processes
to
fix
e-filing
errors
even
though
such
errors
are
inevitable. When
no
prejudice
would
result,
and
all
parties
agree,
courts
should
just
permit
parties
to
substitute
documents
to
fix
e-filing
mistakes.
Jordan
Rothman
is
a
partner
of The
Rothman
Law
Firm,
a
full-service
New
York
and
New
Jersey
law
firm.
He
is
also
the
founder
of Student
Debt
Diaries,
a
website
discussing
how
he
paid
off
his
student
loans.
You
can
reach
Jordan
through
email
at jordan@rothman.law.