Rule 13.1 - Electronic Filing (E-Filing)(A)Electronic Filing Required. In accordance with App.R. 13 any document to be filed in an appeal or original proceeding before the Eighth District Court of Appeals shall be filed with the clerk electronically, except as otherwise provided for in this rule. Such filing shall be in a digitized format specified by the clerk pursuant to the Cuyahoga County Clerk of Court's electronic filing procedure, and this court's local rules and administrative order(s) regarding electronic filing. The clerk of courts is directed to accept any paper filing that is presented. However, the court may strike such filing and require that it be filed electronically if it is found to be in contravention of this rule.(1)Electronic Filing of the Notice of Appeal. If the trial court is the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court - General Division, the appellant may file the notice of appeal electronically in accordance with the clerk's electronic filing procedures. If the trial court is a court other than the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court - General Division, the appellant may file the notice of appeal in paper form or electronically if that trial court has a procedure for accepting such a filing electronically. If filed in paper form, the clerk will scan this document into an approved electronic format promptly upon receipt.(2)Format of Electronically Filed (e-filed) Documents. All electronically filed documents shall be formatted in accordance with the applicable appellate and local rules governing formatting of paper filings. E-filed documents, including attachments, shall be filed in searchable, but not editable, PDF format. External electronic links, to material outside the filed document, are strictly prohibited. Internal links to other parts of the same filing are permissible. (3)Documents Filed Under Seal. Documents filed under seal shall not be filed electronically or scanned by the clerk into electronic format nor uploaded to the court's case management system. The clerk shall maintain all documents filed under seal in this court in paper form only.(4)Filing Documents in Paper Form. An attorney wishing to file a specific document, or all documents in a given case, in paper form rather than electronically may file a motion requesting leave to so file. The motion for leave itself may be filed in paper form and shall set forth the exceptional circumstances justifying the request. (5)Pro Se Litigants. Parties who are not represented by counsel are hereby given leave to file documents in paper form.(6)Scanning and Uploading Paper Documents. Except for documents filed under seal, any document filed in paper form will be scanned and uploaded to the clerk of court's e-filing system. The uploaded electronic document shall constitute the original document.(B)Date and Time of Electronic Filing. Any document filed electronically shall be considered as filed with the court when the transmission to the court's authorized electronic filing system is complete. An electronic filing may be submitted to the clerk 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Any document filed after 11:59 p.m. in the time-zone then applicable to the court, either Eastern Standard Time or Eastern Daylight Savings Time, shall be deemed to have been filed at 8:30 a.m. on the next court business day. Any document filed on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday shall be deemed to have been filed at 8:30 a.m. on the next court business day.(1)Rejection or Acceptance of Electronically Filed Documents. The clerk shall reject any filing that: (a) is not signed by the party;(b) is not in a digitized format approved by the clerk;(c) is not accompanied by a required payment; or(d) requires a judge's signature. The clerk will notify the filer when a filing has been accepted or rejected for docketing and filing in the court's case management system. Each document filed will receive an electronic stamp containing the date and time the filer transmitted the document to the court's authorized electronic filing system as well as a unique confirmation number of the filing. If the clerk rejects or otherwise cannot successfully process a filing, it will not receive a file stamp or confirmation number.
(2)Corrective Filings. To retain the original date and time of filing, a corrective filing may be resubmitted to the clerk within one business day after notice of the rejection is sent to the filer. A corrective filing submitted after the one-day period expires will be considered a new filing.(3)System or User Filing Errors. If a party attempts to file a document electronically and the document is not accepted for docketing and filing on the court's case management system because of an error in the transmission of the document to the electronic filing system, the court may, upon satisfactory proof, enter an order permitting the document to be filed nunc pro tunc to the date it was sent electronically.(4)Fees. Normal filing fees and case deposits will be collected via user credit card or debit card, or such other method as may be approved by the clerk, at the time the document that requires such a fee or deposit is filed.(C)Service of Orders and Other Papers by Clerk. Registered users of the Court's e-Filing System consent to receiving electronic service of papers, including notices, orders, and other documents in lieu of other methods of service, unless otherwise provided by law. For registered users of the Court's e-Filing System, the Court shall issue, and the Clerk shall journalize, and serve notices, orders, and other documents electronically.(D)Service by Parties. Service of documents filed electronically shall be accomplished in the manner prescribed by the appellate rules. See App.R. 3 and 13. Parties are authorized to rely on the court's electronic transmission facilities to make service under App.R. 13(C)(6) to any party who is registered for electronic service on the court's electronic filing transmission facilities, however, a paper copy of any electronically filed document must be served in accordance with App.R. 13(C)(1)-(5) upon any party who is not registered for electronic filing on the court's transmission facilities and is therefore not registered for electronic service. (1)Time to Respond or Act. Whenever a time period is measured from the time after a document is filed, the time will be measured from the date the electronically filed document is deemed to have been filed.(E)Maintenance of Source Documents. The person filing a document electronically shall maintain an exact copy of the source document upon which the electronic filing was based, either in an unalterable electronic format or on paper. The filing person shall retain this source document until final disposition of the case and through any appeal period. The filing person shall make the source document or a facsimile thereof available for production at the request of the court, the clerk, other counsel or parties representing themselves.(F)Signatures of Parties and Counsel. The signature of an attorney or a party on a document that is filed electronically shall be represented with a conformed signature of "/s/ [name]." The conformed signature on an electronically filed document is a legal signature for purposes of the signature requirements of the civil and criminal rules of procedure, the rules of superintendence, and any other law, and will be considered the signature of the person it purports to be for all purposes. See App.R. 13(A)(1). When a stipulation or other document requires two or more signatures, the filing party or attorney will confirm in writing that the contents of the document are acceptable to all persons required to sign the document. The filer will indicate the agreement of all necessary parties at the appropriate place in the document, usually, the signature line(s). If it is established that the documents were transmitted without authority, the court shall order the filing stricken. (1)Signature of Third Parties. Documents containing signatures of third parties, including signatures of notaries public, shall be scanned as an image and filed electronically. The filing party shall retain the original document in paper form until final disposition of the case and through any appeal period. The filing person shall make the original document available for production and copying at the request of the court, the clerk, other counsel, or other parties representing themselves(G)Public Access to Electronically Filed Documents. Members of the public may obtain copies of or review electronically filed documents at the office of the clerk of courts in accordance with the procedures established by the clerk. Public access to electronically filed public documents will be available via the internet website of the clerk of courts in accordance with the court's rules regarding privacy and confidentiality (See Loc.App.R. 13.2 and this court's administrative orders that may be applicable.)Adopted eff. 12/2/2013; amended eff. 8/1/2016; amended eff. 12/28/2020; amended eff. 11/1/2023.