HB-4064, As Passed House, March 6, 2013
January 22, 2013, Introduced by Rep. Heise and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to amend 1961 PA 236, entitled
"Revised judicature act of 1961,"
by amending sections 832, 859, 1427, 2137, and 8344 (MCL 600.832,
600.859, 600.1427, 600.2137, and 600.8344), sections 859 and 8344
as amended by 2005 PA 326 and section 2137 as amended by 2009 PA
239, and by adding sections 1426 and 1428; and to repeal acts and
parts of acts.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec.
832. (1) The probate judge or chief probate judge clerk
of the probate court shall have possession of the seal, records,
books, files, and papers belonging to the probate court in the
respective
county or probate court district . Each judge shall keep
a
true and correct record of each order, sentence, and decree of
the
court, and of all other official acts made or done by him, and
of
all wills proved therein with the probate thereof, of all
letters
of authority and of all other things proper to be recorded
in
the court.and, in accordance
with supreme court rules, shall
maintain every record created by or filed with the probate court.
(2)
The records, except as otherwise provided by law, may be
inspected
without charge by all persons interested.
(3)
The probate court shall maintain an alphabetical index to
the
records of probate court proceedings in each county.
Sec. 859. (1) The following testimony before a probate judge
shall be recorded:
(a) Testimony in contested matters.
(b) Testimony in matters pertaining to the admission to a
hospital or other facility for mentally ill or developmentally
disabled persons.
(c) Testimony in matters pertaining to persons having a
contagious disease.
(d) Testimony in other matters if requested by an interested
party.
(e) Testimony and other proceedings required by supreme court
rule.
(2) In matters not governed by subsection (1), testimony
before a probate judge, probate register, or deputy probate
register may be given orally without a record being made of the
testimony.
(3) The court shall keep sufficient index of the testimony and
the
court shall keep the index and the original notes for at least
10
years as prescribed by
supreme court rules. The reporter or
House Bill No. 4064 as amended February 27, 2013
recorder
need not transcribe the testimony unless a transcript is
ordered
by the court or a party. Except in those cases in which the
testimony
is transcribed and filed with the record of the case,
notes
pertaining to a hearing for the admission of any person to a
hospital
or other place of detention as a mentally ill or
developmentally
disabled person or as a person with a contagious
disease
shall be destroyed only after the discharge of the person
from
the hospital or facility.
(4)
Notes may not be destroyed until after 10 years after the
date
of the hearing or as provided in subsection (3), whichever is
longer.
Sec. 1426. (1) A court may charge a reasonable fee, as
established by the supreme court, for providing enhanced access.
(2) A court may provide enhanced access [
] to another court or to a
public agency[ in accordance with a written agreement. If enhanced access
is provided to another court or to a public agency under this subsection, no fees may be charged.] A written agreement under this subsection shall
contain all of the following:
(a) A statement specifying that the court or public agency
receiving access to or output from the system without charge is
prohibited from selling or providing access to the system's output
to a third party, except in accordance with the written agreement.
(b) A statement specifying the public purpose for which access
to or output from the system is being provided.
(c) Provisions regarding the return of output from the system.
(d) The duration of the agreement and the method by which the
agreement may be rescinded or terminated by either party before the
stated date of termination.
(3) Before providing enhanced access, a court shall adopt an
enhanced access policy under the requirements prescribed by the
supreme court.
(4) This section does not require a court to provide enhanced
access.
(5) As used in this section:
(a) "Enhanced access" means access to a court through
electronic means for pleadings, practice, and procedure, including,
but not limited to, access to its case records as prescribed by
supreme court rules.
(b) "Operating expense" includes, but is not limited to, a
court's direct cost of creating, maintaining, processing, and
upgrading access to the court through electronic means, including
the cost of computer hardware and software, system development,
employee time, and the actual cost of providing the access.
(c) "Reasonable fee" means a charge calculated to enable a
court to recover over time those operating expenses directly
related to the court's provision of enhanced access.
Sec. 1427. All writs, process, proceedings and records in any
court
within this state , shall
be in the English language, (
except that the proper and known names of process, and technical
words, may be expressed in the language heretofore and now commonly
used, ),
and shall be made out on paper,
in a fair, legible
character,
in words at length, and not abbreviated; but such
abbreviations
as are now commonly used in the English language may
be
used, and numbers may be expressed by Arabic figures, or Roman
numerals,
in the customary manner.in
the manner and on any medium
House Bill No. 4064 as amended March 6, 2013
authorized by supreme court rules. If a signature is required on
any document filed with or created by a court, that requirement is
satisfied by an electronic signature as prescribed by supreme court
rules.
Sec. 1428. (1) The state court administrative office shall
establish and maintain records management policies and procedures
for the courts, including a records retention and disposal
schedule, in accordance with supreme court rules. The record
retention and disposal schedule shall be developed and maintained
as prescribed in section 5 of 1913 PA 271, MCL 399.5.
(2) Subject to the records reproduction act, 1992 PA 116, MCL
24.401 to 24.406, a court may dispose of any record as prescribed
in subsection (1).
(3) A record, regardless of its medium, shall not be disposed
of until the record has been in the custody of the court for the
retention period established under subsection (1).
(4) A court may assess a reasonable fee associated with the
creation, reproduction, retrieval, and retention of its records
only as prescribed by the supreme court[, but a court shall not charge a
fee to retrieve and inspect a record on site].
(5) As used in this section, "record" means information of any
kind that is recorded in any manner and that has been created by a
court or filed with a court in accordance with supreme court rules.
Sec.
2137. (1) If a public officer reproduces court records
kept
by him or her pursuant to the records reproduction act, 1992
PA
116, MCL 24.401 to 24.406, the officer may offer the original
records
to the department or state agency responsible for
maintaining
the state archives for placement in the state archives.
If
the department or state agency responsible for maintaining the
state
archives accepts the offer within 30 days, the court shall
transfer
the records to that department or state agency. If the
department
or state agency responsible for maintaining the state
archives
does not accept the offer within 30 days, the court may
dispose
of or destroy the records in the manner provided for state
agencies
under sections 285 and 287 of the management and budget
act,
1984 PA 431, MCL 18.1285 and 18.1287, and section 5 of 1913 PA
271,
MCL 399.5. The record of a court shall not be disposed of or
destroyed
until the record has been in the custody of the court for
not
less than 6 years.
(2)
In a county or probate court district in which the county
board
or boards of commissioners pass a resolution or resolutions
for
reproducing records pursuant to the records reproduction act,
1992
PA 116, MCL 24.401 to 24.406, the judge of probate may have
the
records of the probate court reproduced in accordance with the
resolution
or resolutions. The judge of probate shall have a copy
or
a duplicate kept in a building outside of the probate office and
shall
keep a copy available in the probate office with any suitable
equipment
necessary for displaying the record at not less than its
original
size or for preparing copies for persons entitled to
copies.
The judge of probate then may order a record destroyed. A
reproduction
in a medium pursuant to under
the records reproduction
act, 1992 PA 116, MCL 24.401 to 24.406, or a reproduction
consisting of a printout or other output readable by sight from
such a medium is admissible as evidence before a court, commission,
or
administrative body the same as the original . The original file
of
an estate proceeding shall not be destroyed until 6 years after
the
date the discharge of the fiduciary is filed or 10 years after
the
last document is filed, whichever occurs first.
(3)
A court of record other than the district court may order
the
destruction of a court reporter or recorder note, tape, or
recording
15 years after the date that the note, tape, or recording
was
made for a felony case and 10 years after the date that the
note,
tape, or recording was made for any other case. One year
after
a transcript of a note, tape, or recording is filed with the
court,
the court may order the destruction of the note, tape, or
recording.
If a transcript of a trial or other proceeding in a
court
of record other than the district court is ordered other than
for
filing in the case file, the court reporter or recorder also
shall
prepare and shall file a certified copy of the transcript in
the
case file at the expense of the person ordering the transcript
unless
a copy has been filed with the court or unless the chief
judge
of the court orders otherwise in an order filed in the case
file.
As used in this subsection, "felony case" does not include
proceedings
in a case that occur before arraignment on information
or
indictment or proceedings in a case in which the defendant is
not
convicted of a felony.
(4)
Except as provided in subsection (3), a judicial circuit
of
the circuit court may order the destruction of its files and
records
in a case in which action has not been taken during the 25
years
immediately preceding the order of destruction. All of the
following
procedures shall be followed before the issuance of an
order
of destruction of circuit court files and records:
(a)
The judgment or decree, if any, shall be reproduced
pursuant
to the records reproduction act, 1992 PA 116, MCL 24.401
to
24.406, or separated and retained, and the original or
reproduction
shall be made available for public inspection.
(b)
The circuit court shall offer the files and records,
subject
to the order of destruction, to the Michigan historical
commission
established by section 1 of 1913 PA 271, MCL 399.1, or a
historical
commission created under section 2 of 1957 PA 213, MCL
399.172.
If the historical commission accepts the offer within 30
days,
the circuit court shall transfer the files and records to the
historical
commission. If the historical commission does not accept
the
offer within 30 days, the circuit court shall issue an order of
destruction.
(5)
A reproduction of a record in a medium pursuant to the
records
reproduction act, 1992 PA 116, MCL 24.401 to 24.406, or a
reproduction
consisting of a printout or other output readable by
sight
from such a medium, made as provided by law, and has the same
force and effect as the original would have had and shall be
treated as an original for the purpose of admissibility in
evidence.
A duly certified or authenticated copy of the
reproduction shall be admitted into evidence equally with the
original reproduction.
(6)
Except for records described in subsection (3), this This
section only applies to records filed with the court and maintained
by the court clerk or register.
Sec.
8344. Except as provided in this section, not less than 6
years
after the entry of a judgment in a civil action, including a
summary
proceeding, or in an ordinance violation case or a criminal
case
in the district court, the court may dispose of documents,
records,
recordings, and notes related to that action, except the
register
of actions pursuant to a schedule adopted by the state
administrative
board. The court may order the destruction of
documents,
records, recordings, and notes related to a civil
infraction
action not less than 3 years after the entry of a
finding
in the action. The court may order the destruction of
notes,
tapes, and recordings that have been transcribed and filed
with
the court 1 year after the date of the filing of the
transcript.
The register of actions shall be in a form adequate to
reveal,
in summary fashion, the general nature of the action and
judgment.
After the disposal of the documents, records, recordings,
and
notes, the register of actions or a certified reproduction of
the
register of actions pursuant to the records media act is the
official
record of the action and judgment. The
validity and
enforceability of a judgment are not affected by the destruction of
the piece of paper upon which the judgment is entered, but the
register of actions itself, or a certified reproduction of the
register
of actions pursuant to under
the records reproduction act,
1992 PA 116, MCL 24.401 to 24.406, is a complete replacement of the
judgment and the records of the action. This section applies to
judgments
all of the following:
(a) Judgments of municipal and common pleas courts abolished
after January 1, 1969, if the judgment was entered or the action
disposed
of after January 1, 1969. This section applies to actions
(b) Actions entered in the small claims division of the
district
court, except that a register of actions need is not
required to be preserved or maintained after destruction of the
file.
Enacting section 1. 1949 PA 66, MCL 780.221 to 780.225, is
repealed.