New e-filing system for civil cases starts

Magistrate courts in 12 New Mexico counties are part of the first phase of a new e-filing system for civil cases.

Filings will occur through the judiciary’s online file and serve system currently used at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.

“E-filing provides a more convenient way for attorneys to initiate civil lawsuits in a magistrate court and submit subsequent caserelated documents,” Chief Justice Michael E. Vigil said in a release from the Administrative Office of the Courts. “The online technology … is far more efficient than having attorneys and their staff filing paper documents in court.”

The initial rollout of the system includes five judicial districts covering Eddy, Chaves, Lea, Curry, Roosevelt, De Baca, Harding, Quay, McKinley, San Juan, Lincoln and Otero counties. The remaining seven judicial districts will see rollouts by May or August.

E-filing has been available for civil cases in district courts since 2010 and criminal cases since 2019.