District Court Rules 2005

Subject to the requirements of the ECMS and this rule, a person who is a registered user may file a document electronically by filing an electronic version of it using the ECMS.

If a document is to be filed by a legal practitioner on behalf of a client —

the legal practitioner must be a registered user; and

the document must be filed electronically unless —

the ECMS is unavailable for use or does not permit the document to be presented for filing electronically; or

the rules of court state that the document cannot be filed electronically; or

the document is filed for the purposes of an urgent application made outside office hours; or

the document is filed by a legal practitioner given permission under subrule (1B) to file it otherwise than by using the ECMS.

A registrar, for any good reason and without a formal application or request, may permit a legal practitioner to file a document otherwise than by using the ECMS.

If a document is not required to be filed electronically, whether by the operation of subrule (1B) or otherwise, the document may be presented to the relevant registry for filing —

by emailing it to the published email address for that registry; or

by delivering it; or

by posting it; or

subject to rule 19, by faxing it.

If the rules of court require a document to be signed by a person who is not, or who is not acting on behalf of, the person filing it, the document cannot be filed electronically unless it is an affidavit.

If the rules of court require a document, before it is filed, to be signed by or on behalf of the person filing it and the document is being filed electronically —

the document need not be signed by that person; and

the person filing the document electronically must ensure that the electronic version of the document, instead of showing a signature at any place where a signature is required, states the name of the person whose signature is required at the place.

A person who files an affidavit electronically must either file an electronic version of it that includes the signatures on it or —

file an electronic version of it that does not include the signatures on it; and

ensure that the electronic version, instead of showing a signature at any place where a signature appears in the paper version, states the name of the person whose signature it is; and

also file an undertaking that the person —

has possession of the paper version signed according to law; and

will retain the paper version subject to any order of the Court.

A document filed electronically is taken to have been filed on the day and at the time recorded by the ECMS.

A document that is presented to the Court for filing electronically but not in accordance with the requirements of the ECMS and this rule is to be taken —

not to have been filed; and

not to be part of the Court’s record.

If a party files a document electronically but does so in error, the Court may, with the consent of the party, remove the document from the Court record.

The RSC Order 67 applies, subject to subrule (7C).

A reference in the RSC Order 67 rule 5(1) to a registrar refusing to file a document is to be taken as including a reference to the Court removing from the Court record a document filed electronically.

A person who files a document electronically must have the original paper version of the document with him or her at any conference or hearing in the course of the case concerned.

The Court may at any time, on the application of a party or on its own initiative, order a person who has filed a document electronically to file the paper version of the document.