Definitions
The following terms shall be defined as follows:
“Court” means the clerks, judges, internal court personnel, and officials of a jurisdiction;
“Court Administrator” means a person designated by the jurisdiction to administer TnCIS, the internal Document Management System (DMS), and selected internal users;
“Case Management System” or “CMS” means a computer system operated by the Clerk’s Office which maintains all case information;
“Authorized Users” means the following persons who, upon completion of the registration requirements, or user account configuration, may E-File documents:
“E-Filer or e-filer” is an Authorized User who has an approved e-filing login, username, and password allowing e-filing of documents into the Clerk’s office for approval and recording;
“Court Convenience Fee” is a charge incurred from the payment processor that is added to the court statutory fees as part of the payment collection;
“Document” means a pleading, motion, application, request, exhibit, brief, memorandum of law, paper, or other instrument in paper form or electronic form which is permitted to be filed pursuant to the TRCP and the Local Rules;
“Document Management System” or “DMS” means a computer software operated by the Clerk’s office which stores all documents filed to the Court in electronic form or paper form;
“E-file”, “e-file”, “e-filing”, or “E-filing” means the electronic transmission of original documents and data to a Court, and from the Court, for the purposes of recording information and Court documents to a Court case or other official Court purposes. For purposes of this agreement, e-filing does not include the filing of faxed documents;
“Tybera eFlex e-Filing System” or ‘ECF’ means the software and services provided by Tybera Development Group, Inc. for the e-filers to E-file, for the clerks to review filings, and process to collect fees through a payment processor, and recorded all information to the Court’s CMS and DMS;
“E-Filing Fee” is the fee an attorney or pro se litigant pays for using the E-Filing system. This is in addition to the Court Convenience Fee charged by the payment processor and the statutory filing fee;
“Local Rules” mean the local rules and procedures of each Court supported by the ECF;
“Notice of Electronic Filing” or “NEF” means an electronic notice distributed by the ECF to Authorized Users of the ECF when court documents are E-filed to a case. The notices are specific to a case and are distributed to case participants or their legal representatives who are registered in the ECF System, recorded in TnCIS as a case participant, and are linked between ECF and TnCIS. The official NEF is accessed through the ECF interface. The ECF system distributes NEF information through email messages, however this is not the official copy due to errors that can occur in email servers and email addresses;
“Party” or “Parties” means any person, including an individual, executor, administrator, or other personal representative, corporation, partnership, association or any other legal, governmental or commercial entity, whether organized under the laws of this State who is a party in a case pending in the Court and is represented by an attorney or acting pro se;
“PDF” or “Portable Document Format” means a computer file format developed by Adobe Systems for representing documents in a manner that is independent of the original application software, hardware, and operating system used to create those documents. Converted Documents must contain the “.pdf” file extension;
“Statutory Fees” means those normal filing fees charged by the Court to file a law suit and other usual fees charged by the Court in the course of the case;
“System Administrator” means the Tybera Development Group, Inc. personnel that support the Court Administrator and the registration and support of Authorized Users;
“Terms of Use Agreement” means this agreement and each Courts Rules and Procedures established by the Clerk(s) that sets forth the parameters for the use of the ECF System by all Authorized Users;
“TnCIS” means the Tennessee Court Information System or Case Management System software, supported by Local Government, owned and controlled by the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts, used to manage and record case information specific to Tennessee;
“Traditional Filing” is a process by which a Party files a paper document with the Clerk;
“TRCP” means the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure.
General Terms
This user agreement serves as an agreement between you, Tybera Development Group, Inc. (Tybera), its successors, and each Tennessee jurisdiction that has received approval by the Tennessee Supreme Court Technology Committee to use the Tybera eFlex e-filing system to e-file and, depending on local court rules, provide NEFs to other parties on the case.
This agreement is limited to only jurisdictions that are contracted with Tybera Development Group, Inc. To find out which jurisdictions use this ECF system you can visit http://www.tybera.com/support/tennessee-support. The courts supported by this system changes from time to time.
This agreement may be updated when new Tennessee legislation or modifications to local court rules and procedures require changes.
You are responsible to check the local rules and procedures of each jurisdiction for which you anticipate e-filing court documents. Each jurisdiction is required to post their e-filing rules and procedures on their website 30 days prior to beginning using this ECF system. For your convenience, Tybera posts links to some of the jurisdiction’s rules and procedures at http://www.tybera.com/support/tennessee-support.
Your registration in the Tybera eFlex e-filing system does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and Tybera. Using this system requires expertise and knowledge of the rules and procedures of the courts. If you are uncertain of what to e-file, you should consult a competent attorney licensed to practice in the appropriate jurisdiction.
Your registration in the Tybera eFlex e-filing system must be completed and approved before you can begin using this e-filing system. As part of the registration for this system, you must accept the terms of this agreement. By clicking on the ‘I Accept’ checkbox and proceeding, this becomes a legally binding agreement between you and Tybera Development Group, Inc.
Once you have completed your registration information and submitted your request for approval, Tybera will review your request, verify your information and approve or reject the account depending on conditions and information provided by the Tennessee Bar Association, and the Clerks.
When your account is approved, you will receive an email message of the account approval through your primary email address in your profile information. If there are errors or conditions that prevent the Tybera e-Filing Administrator from approving or completing your registration, you may contact Tybera support to ascertain why your account was not approved.
You understand that your account will be suspended by the Tybera e-Filing Administrator if it is determined that your account is being misused, abused, or fraudulently used. Your account may also be suspended if any information provided during the account registration process is false or fraudulent.
You must define your own username and password. You must not use or attempt to define and use a username that is obscene, offensive, potentially libelous, or deceptive. A deceptive username includes, but is not limited to, a user ID that could be construed to give a false or misleading impression of the individual owners identify or association with any other legal entity.
You must complete and maintain your user profile, including your name, email, physical addresses, phone number, username, and password. You should update your password on a regular basis and not share your password with others.
You are responsible for all documents and information filed through your account. If you share your password with support staff, you are responsible for any information filed by other people using your account.
You are responsible to verify that all documents e-filed through your account are free of viruses, Trojans, or other malicious electronic behavior.
All court documents you e-file must be redacted. Any content that is required by the court that is otherwise deemed confidential, sealed, or non-public information must be filed under an order that permits you to file the document as sealed. In the event that you must file a document with confidential, sealed, or non-public information, you must identify the document as sealed when you upload the document and enter the date of the order approving the filing of your document as sealed. This information is either entered in a note field or in the field provided.
You will notify Tybera support at (801)-226-2746 in the event you suspect fraudulent use of your account. This includes any use of your account by an individual not expressly authorized to do so.
You will cooperate with the Tybera e-Filing Administrator and law enforcement during investigations into misuse, abuse or fraud of the ECF system, your account, or problems with recording of information you may have e-filed.
You are responsible to attend online training or read the manuals provided in the footer links of eFlex to understand how to use the system. Tybera will post a schedule on their website for training specific to this installation. Tybera has also posted some training videos at http://www.tybera.com/support/tennessee-support.
Unavailability of the Tybera eFlex e-filing system shall neither constitute a basis for an extension of time in which to file any matter with the court nor in any way affect any applicable statute of limitations, except as provided by law, and the local rules of the court you are e-filing to. During an outage, you must contact the jurisdiction you need to e-file to for instructions of how to proceed.
You assume all risk and waive any claim for damages against Tybera using the eFlex e-filing.
Any challenge or dispute regarding these Terms of Use, whether sounding in contract or tort, relating to its validity, construction, interpretation and enforcement shall be determined, governed, and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Tennessee. The venue shall be in the jurisdiction in which the e-filed dispute arises.
Role Specific Terms
This system requires you to select a role you will use to participate in this e-filing system. The roles are Attorney, Firm Financial Manager, and Self-Represented Litigant.
To register as an attorney, you must be licensed to practice law in the State of Tennessee and be in good standing. As an attorney, you must select the Law Firm you work for. If your firm is not listed, you may add the Law Firm name during your registration process. Make sure you enter the legal name of your firm.
A Pro Hac Vicé attorney cannot register to e-file in this system at this time. A Pro Hac Vicé must work through an attorney licensed to practice in Tennessee. These rules may change in the future as Tybera works with the various jurisdictions on their local rules and procedures.
Registering as a Firm Financial Manager does not allow you to e-file. A Firm Financial Manager user is only able to review the payments made by all of the attorneys in their Law Firm for accounting purposes. If you are an attorney and a Firm Financial Manager, you will be required to have two accounts. To register as a Firm Financial Manager, you must contact Tybera Support at (801) 226-2746 for further requirements regarding verification for this type of account.
An individual can register as a Self-Represented Litigant. Registering as a Self-Represented Litigant means that you represent yourself on a case. Registering as a Self-Represented Litigant in the Tybera eFlex e-filing system will not automatically link your e-filing account to the cases on which you are participating. You will not get notifications until you have linked your eFlex e-filing user account with the cases on which you are listed. You must link your Tybera eFlex e-filing account to each case on which you are participating. To link your Tybera eFlex e-filing account, you must e-file a “Notice of Association.” Follow the instructions in the user manual to file a “Notice of Association.” A link to the user manual is in the footer section of the Tybera eFlex e-filing system.
Electronic Service or Notice of Electronic Filing (NEF)
When you have completed your registration, and your account has been approved for e-filing, you can begin e-filing and receiving NEFs. Your registration constitutes your request for, and consent to, electronic service of documents filed electronically by other parties when the jurisdiction local court rules support service through the Tybera eFlex e-filing system. The NEF does not replace primary service which is carried out by a process server or law enforcement.
You acknowledge that there may be parties on the case that are not registered to receive electronic service or NEFs. You are responsible to use the eFlex Service List feature to identify which parties that have agreed to receive electronic services or NEF and which parties require service in paper through mail or other methods of service. Refer to the User Manual for how to identify who is registered to receive notifications and who requires paper.
As an attorney, your e-filing account is linked to cases by your Tennessee Bar Number. If you are not recorded on the case as a legal representative to a party, you will not receive NEFs. You must file a Notice / Entry of Appearance to be linked to the case. After the clerk approves the request and records the relationship in TnCIS, you will begin receiving notifications on that case. Some Clerks have not properly recorded Bar Numbers for attorneys when recording an attorney with a party on a case. If you are not receiving NEFs on a case, it may be caused by this condition. You are responsible to contact the Clerk of the jurisdiction of the case and review if your bar number is properly included on the case.
NEFs are posted in the Tybera eFlex e-filing interface. An email message is sent to the email addresses in your profile. Depend on the local court rules and procedures to determine what is an official notice or service. You understand that you should check the Tybera eFlex e-filing interface to find your notifications and notifications will be automatically cleared out after 60 days.
Payments and Credit Card information
You are responsible for payment of court statutory fees incurred due to your e-filed items.
To pay court statutory fees, you must register a valid, active payment method for each jurisdiction to which you will e-file. Each jurisdiction can select their own payment processor. For this reason, you must register your payment method with each jurisdiction to which you anticipate e-filing. You must register a valid, active payment method such as a credit card or ACH account you have rights to use.
You must register a valid, active credit card you have rights to use for payments of e-filing convenience fees. Tybera charges convenience or transaction fees based on Tennessee legislation T.C.A. § 8-21-401 or newer versions of the legislation, which allows for $5.00 per filing up to $50 per case. Alternately, the account holder may choose to by-pass the convenience or transaction fee by paying for an annual subscription of $300.00. A single filing with a $5.00 transaction fee can contain multiple documents associated to a single case. There is a limit to the number of documents you can include in a submission, which is determined by the size of the documents. Tennessee State Agencies can request from Tybera organizational account that waive the e-filing convenience fees.
Signatures
You must read the local rules and procedures of the jurisdiction in which you are filing to understand their rules on signatures.