Improvements coming soon to online Kane court records

It's been 11 weeks since officials with the Kane County Circuit Court Clerk's Office rolled out a beta version to access court records online and officials say they've received positive feedback so far.

"It's easier to read the new system and it's much easier to use than jumping through the windows of the old program," said Karin Herwick, chief deputy court clerk.

Officials introduced the beta version March 1 at the clerk's website and are still refining it. Herwick said there is no timetable to dismantle the old portal, but it eventually will be phased out.

The new system does not show the dates of birth for defendants in criminal cases and that is because Circuit Clerk Deb Seyller wants to do everything she can to protect people's information, Herwick said.

By summer, the office will have developed a system to allow some users, such as law enforcement and prosecutors, to have access to birth dates, Herwick said.

The Kane County Board is still in the process of having a firm draw up a plan to replace the current case management system, which has been deemed outdated, inefficient, and requires employees and law enforcements officers often to enter the same data multiple times for the same case.

Prosecutors have expressed their frustration that they can't easily extract statistics and crime trend data unless employees tabulate the information by hand.

Some have pegged a new system to cost more than $12 million. A county committee addressing the issue meets next week.

In the meantime, the Illinois Supreme Court this year could make it a little easier for attorneys to do their jobs.

Supreme Court spokesman Joseph Tybor this week said justices are in the process of drawing up uniform rules for circuits to allow attorneys of record on cases to file and view documents electronically.

A few circuits in the state have been doing this on a trial basis. Appellate and federal courts have electronic filing capability and attorneys say it can in turn reduce the hours they bill clients because they won't have to drive to the clerk's office to file lawsuits and court motions.

"You really don't have a uniform case management system across the state," Tybor said. "The Supreme Court hasn't promulgated those standards yet, but I am told they are close to being approved."