After processing cases for more than 38 years in what was a cutting-edge information system in the 1970s, Lewis County Superior Court and County Clerk’s office successfully began operating with a new modern case management system on June 15.

 

“We are very happy about the successful implementation of the Odyssey case management system in Lewis County,” said Washington Supreme Court Justice Mary Fairhurst, chair of the Judicial Information System Committee. “We are excited to bring this modern system to the state superior courts. Because of this, public safety and access to justice will be enhanced.”

 

Lewis County serves as the pilot site for the new Odyssey system, which will be implemented in nearly every superior court and county clerk’s office around the state over the next three years.

 

Though members of the public and businesses may experience some minor changes, the primary difference for Washingtonians will be behind the scenes in better information sharing between courts from different counties, more efficient case management and monitoring, much improved scheduling, better access to data, and much more.

 

The current case processing system used by Washington superior courts was built by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) in the 1970s and was considered cutting edge at the time, but is now expensive to maintain and repair and does not have the badly needed functionality of a modern system. The search for a modern case management system for state superior courts began in 2010 at the request of the Superior Court Judges’ Association, the Washington State Association of County Clerks and the Association of Washington Superior Court Administrators.

 

Odyssey was developed by Tyler Technologies specifically for courts and justice agencies, and has been implemented by courts in states around the U.S., most recently in Oregon. The system was chosen for Washington superior courts after an extensive search and evaluation process involving courts and county clerk offices around the state. The cost to acquire, configure and implement Odyssey is estimated to be approximately $38 million for staff, vendor services, licensing and maintenance through fiscal year 2019. The cost is funded through the Judicial Information System account established specifically for court technology needs and is approved by state lawmakers.

 

After a real-work test day at the Lewis County courthouse on Saturday, June 13, the decision to “go live”at the end of Saturday was unanimous and signed by Lewis County Superior Court Presiding Judge Richard Brosey, County Clerk Kathy Brack and Court Administrator Susie Parker, as well as representatives of AOC and Tyler Technologies. The court opened for public business June 15 and staff members have worked with Odyssey since then.

 

“Odyssey is a great product supported by great people,” said Lewis County Superior Court Judge James Lawler. “When we went live on June 15, we had people from the AOC and Tyler Technologies literally standing at our side every step of the way. I was able to use Judge Edition on the first day to manage a domestic violence calendar smoothly. I haven’t used a physical file since then and by the third day I had instructed my clerk to leave the files in the clerk’s office. It’s nice to finally be using technology from this century!”

 

Project staff from AOC and Tyler continued to assist Lewis County staff onsite at the courthouse through June 26 as they adapted to working in the new system. As with any complex system, trouble-shooting and adjustments will continue during this and future implementations.

 

“Staff members from Lewis County, AOC and Tyler have worked tirelessly for many months to make this launch possible,” said state Court Administrator Callie T. Dietz. “This historic event marks the beginning of an era of more efficient, functional and cost effective technology for Washington’s superior courts and county clerk’s offices. The system will provide better service to state residents and businesses, and better communication with justice partners and other agencies.”

 

The next phase of the project involves implementing Odyssey in “early adopter” superior courts and county clerk offices in Franklin, Thurston, and Yakima counties later this year. Snohomish and Spokane counties are scheduled to follow in Spring and Fall of next year, and the remaining Washington counties are scheduled to be implemented by 2018.

 

For more information, visit the SC-CMS web page at www.courts.wa.gov/sccms.