EDDS: UCS Program for Electronic Delivery of Documents
In response to the COVID-19 public health emergency and the expansion of “virtual” court operations, the Unified Court System has initiated a new program to transmit digitized documents (in pdf format) to UCS courts, County Clerks, and other court-related offices around the State. The Electronic Document Delivery System (“EDDS”) allows users, in a single transaction, to (1) enter basic information about a matter on a UCS webpage portal page; (2) upload one or more pdf documents; and (3) send those documents electronically to a court or clerk selected by the user. Upon receipt of the document(s) by the court, the sender will receive an email notification, together with a unique code that identifies the delivery. More detailed instructions for sending or filing documents through EDDS may be found on the EDDS FAQ page.
Users/Senders should keep several important points in mind when using this system:
1. EDDS May be Used to File Papers with Certain Courts: At the direction of the Chief Administrative Judge, during the COVID-19 public health crisis EDDS can be used to deliver documents for filing with certain courts— including some Family Courts, Criminal Courts, Supreme Court, the Court of Claims, Surrogate’s Courts, and District Courts, and City Courts. (EDDS is not available in the New York City Criminal Court.)
To use the system for filing, the sender must simply check a box on the sender information screen, complete the sending of the document(s) to the appropriate court through the EDDS system, and pay any required filing fee by credit card. The clerk’s office will review the document(s) for sufficiency and, if the clerk determines that filing prerequisites have been met, accept them for filing purposes. In the event that a clerk’s office has accepted and filed a document received through EDDS, the sender will be notified of that fact by email or publication on a public database. If no email or published notification is issued indicating that the document has been accepted for filing, the sender should not assume that the filing has occurred. The sender may contact the clerk’s office to inquire about the status of a proposed filing.
2. EDDS is Not a Substitute for E-filing or NYSCEF: Please note that, although EDDS may be used for filing in various courts, it does not replace and may not substitute for filing under the New York State Courts Electronic Filing System (NYSCEF). Therefore, it should not be used in matters where NYSCEF is available on either a mandatory or consensual basis. (Counties and case types where NYSCEF is available are listed on NYSCEF’s Authorized for E-Filing page.)
3. EDDS Delivery is not “Service” on Other Parties: Finally, unlike NYSCEF, delivery of a document through EDDS does not constitute service of the document on any other party. If service is required, the sender must serve by some other means.
In sum, EDDS is a document delivery portal that complements the UCS electronic filing system and which, upon completion and together with NYSCEF, will allow remote and immediate delivery of digitized documents throughout the Unified Court System.
Go to EDDS: https://iappscontent.courts.state.ny.us/NYSCEF/live/edds.htm
