GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 02-03 - BULK ELECTRONIC DATA DISSEMINATION POLICY

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS

The Illinois Supreme Court’s Electronic Access Policy for Circuit Court Records of the Illinois Courts (eff. January 1, 2003) having been superseded by the Supreme Court of Illinois Remote Access Policy (eff. January 1, 2020), Cook County Cir. Ct. G.A.O. 2002-03 (eff. Dec. 2, 2002) is hereby amended as follows:

GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER No. 2002-03
 

SUBJECT: Bulk electronic data dissemination policy

Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to set forth a uniform, cost-effective, and equitable method for the dissemination of bulk electronic court record data to commercial business entities. Nothing in this order shall be construed to mean that the Circuit Court of Cook County (hereinafter "court") or the circuit clerk (hereinafter "clerk") is obligated to reproduce or disseminate bulk court records in an electronic format or by means of an electronic medium. See generally Supreme Court of Illinois Remote Access Policy (eff. January 1, 2020).

Available Data
The electronic court record data referred to herein include all records of the court that are being maintained by the clerk pursuant to the provisions in the Clerks of Courts Act, 705 ILCS 105/0.01 et seq.

The clerk may prepare uniformly packaged data files for distribution to entities requesting bulk electronic court record data in one or more electronic formats that meet industry standards for data dissemination. Uniformly packaged data files are a fixed and standard set of predetermined data elements extracted from an entire file or a substantial subset of a file maintained as a computerized court record. All uniformly packaged data files and the method(s) used to disseminate such data must be approved by the chief circuit judge (hereinafter “chief judge”) in writing. The method used to make bulk electronic court records available to requesting entities shall not include a direct connection to the clerk’s computer system.

The clerk shall not disseminate any data files, including uniform data files, that result from selective searches of court record data by identifying fields, other than the name of a party or attorney of record. This prohibition on the use of identifying fields includes, but is not limited to, fields such as birth date, social security number, residence address, race, gender, or any other personal identity information of a party. The clerk shall not select, aggregate, or manipulate certain court records in response to any request for bulk electronic court record data, without prior written approval from the chief judge.

The dissemination of electronic court record data must be in compliance with all applicable laws. The clerk shall not disseminate electronic court record data concerning matters or materials required to be sealed, impounded, expunged, or otherwise subjected to restricted access by statute, court rule, or court order.

Request Procedure
Prior to considering any request for bulk electronic court record data, the clerk shall establish a written, office-wide policy on the dissemination of bulk electronic court record data that is consistent with this order and the provisions of the Clerks of Courts Act, 705 ILCS 105/0.01, et seq. The clerk’s policy shall include procedures for requesting bulk electronic court record data and responding to such requests pursuant to the authority granted in section 27.1b(y) of the Clerks of Courts Act, 705 ILCS 105/27.1b(y). The clerk’s policy shall be communicated, orally or in writing, to anyone making a request for bulk electronic court record data.

The office-wide policy established by the clerk must be approved by the chief judge in writing before any individual request is granted. Once approved, any request seeking uniformly packaged data shall be considered routine and will not require further approval by the chief judge. Each request for electronic court record data other than uniformly packaged data shall be considered a special request and must be submitted directly to the chief judge for written approval prior to dissemination of any of the requested data.

Fees
The fees set by the Clerk shall include all costs associated with processing the electronic court record data requested. The term “costs,” as used herein, includes, but is not limited to, expenditures made for analysis and design, computer programming, program testing, computer run time, telecommunications, overhead, and materials (e.g., tapes, disks, other electronic media, microfiche, paper).

Pursuant to section 27.1b(y) of the Clerks of Courts Act, 705 ILCS 105/27.1b(y), the clerk shall submit the data dissemination fee schedule to the chief judge, in advance, for written approval. The clerk may revise the fee schedule, as needed, to reflect changes in the costs of extracting or duplicating electronic court records or in the types of requests proposed to be granted. Any revisions shall be submitted to the chief judge, in advance, for written approval.

The clerk may accept in-kind services or goods as a form of payment for bulk electronic data, provided that such in-kind services or goods are valued at or above the costs associated with processing the electronic court record data requested. Any proposal for in-kind services, in full or in part, must be submitted to the chief judge, in advance, for written approval of the clerk’s valuation of the in-kind payment.

Requester Agreement
All entities requesting bulk electronic court record data shall certify at the time of the request, that the documents or records requested will not be used directly or indirectly to sell a product or services to an individual or the general public.

Non-exclusivity
The clerk shall not enter into any agreement that purports to grant any entity the exclusive right to receive bulk electronic court record data. Any agreement purporting to grant an exclusive right or otherwise granting an individual or entity any similar advantage over other individuals or entities shall be invalid and shall have no binding effect on the court.

Business Records
The clerk shall maintain complete records of all transactions involving bulk electronic court record data. Each record shall contain copies of all correspondence, including, but not limited to, all requests for data, all approvals of requests for data, all denials of requests for data, all written approvals of special requests by the chief judge, all written agreements between the court, the clerk, and the individual or entity requesting data, and all disclaimers or other information provided to individuals or entities receiving data directly from the clerk. All documents enumerated in this paragraph, or otherwise pertaining to the normal business processing of requests for bulk electronic court record data, shall be business records of the clerk and the court.

Implementation
Within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this order, any existing or pending methods utilized by the clerk for the purpose of distributing bulk electronic court record data and any policies or procedures related thereto must be in full compliance with this order.

Dated this 30th day of January, 2020, effective immediately.

                                                       Enter:

                                                       TIMOTHY C. EVANS
                                                       Chief Judge
                                                       Circuit Court of Cook County