X FILED __LODGED
__RECEIVED __COPY
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2 DECEMBER 26, 2023
3 CLERK US DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF ARIZONA
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BY s/ M. Everette DEPUTY
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6 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
7 FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA
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In the matter of:
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ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION OF
10 DOCUMENTS BY PRISONERS
Amended on 12/26/2023 to include Lewis GENERAL ORDER 23-19
11 Complex and Winslow Complex
12 SUPERSEDES GENERAL ORDER 14-17
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14 The United States District Court for the District of Arizona and the Arizona
15 Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry (ADCRR) began a prison electronic
16 filing (e-filing) pilot project on May 1, 2012, for a period of one year.1 The pilot project
17 was intended to increase the efficiency and reduce the cost of processing prisoner filings.
18 The pilot project was extended and expanded to a second ADCRR Complex in August
19 2014.2
20 The Court and ADCRR have agreed to make permanent the existing pilot program
21 and expand it to include the following ADCRR Complexes and Private Facilities: Douglas
22 Complex; Eyman Complex; Lewis Complex; Perryville Complex; Phoenix Complex;
23 Safford Complex; Tucson Complex; Winslow Complex; Yuma Complex; Central Arizona
24 Correctional Facility; Florence West; Kingman; La Palma; Marana; Phoenix West; and
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For the initial pilot program, the Court provided five digital senders for use in five
26 units in ADCRR’s Eyman Complex: Cook, Meadows, Rynning, Browning, and SMU I.
The Court retains ownership of the digital senders.
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The pilot program expanded to six units in ADCRR’s Lewis Complex: Bachman,
28 Barchey, Buckley, Morey, Rast, and Stiner. For the Lewis Units, ADCRR provided its
own scanning equipment.
1 Red Rock Correctional Center. Its use is mandatory for all unsealed cases filed in the
2 District of Arizona.3
3 ADCRR must give at least fourteen (14) days’ notice to the Court and to prisoners
4 before beginning e-filing in any of the additional complexes listed in this General Order.
5 This will provide the Court sufficient time to make necessary adjustments to its Electronic
6 Case Filing system and inform prisoners about the transition to mandatory e-filing.
7 ADCRR will provide scanning equipment for use in each complex or facility. Each
8 complex or facility’s staff will scan to PDF and, after quality review, email to the Court all
9 documents presented by prisoners for filing with the Court. The original documents will
10 be returned to the prisoner. All documents submitted for filing by prisoners must be
11 emailed to the Court in a PDF format.
12 The Court will receive and file the prisoners’ documents electronically. After
13 service of the prisoner’s complaint or petition and appearance by an opposing party,
14 transmission of the Notice of Electronic Filing (NEF) to opposing parties who are
15 Electronic Case Filing Registered Users constitutes service of the hyperlinked document
16 for purposes of Rule 5(b)(2)(E) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Clerk of
17 Court will mail a copy of the prisoner’s electronically filed document(s) to Nonregistered
18 ECF Users. Prisoners filing under this Program are not required to submit courtesy copies
19 to the Court pursuant to Local Rule of Civil Procedure 5.4.
20 Each ADCRR Complex Unit must establish an email address for receipt of NEFs
21 for documents filed electronically. Prison staff in each unit will print the NEFs,
22 hyperlinked orders, and other documents filed by the Court. Receipt by the prisoner of
23 copies of the NEFs, hyperlinked orders, and other hyperlinked documents constitutes
24 service of the document on the prisoner. If the prisoner refuses delivery or is not currently
25 at the designated Complex Unit, staff will indicate the reason for non-delivery on the NEF
26 and email it to the Court for notation on the docket.
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3
Sealed cases are exempt from this program.
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1 Opposing parties must serve filings on prisoners in ADCRR by means other than
2 electronic filing as provided in Rule 5 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Prison staff
3 will not provide to prisoners NEFs or the hyperlinked documents filed by opposing parties.
4 These procedures shall take effect immediately for any case filed in any existing e-
5 filing Complex Unit. These procedures shall take effect November 6, 2023, for any case
6 filed in any new e-filing Complex Unit so long as the requisite advance notice has been
7 provided to the Court and to that Complex Unit’s prisoners.
8 The Court and ADCRR must periodically evaluate the program and determine
9 whether it should be continued, terminated, modified, or expanded.
10 This General Order supersedes General Order 14-17.
11 Dated this 26th day of December, 2023.
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