Responding to complaints, San Diego Superior Court officials have announced mostly lower charges for downloading online court documents.
The new fee structure, starting Jan. 1, affects documents bought via the online Register of Actions, which holds paperwork for many civil, small claims and probate cases.
Currently, the fee structure is a flat $7.50 for the first 10 pages, regardless of whether the document is one or 10 pages, and 7 cents per page thereafter, up to a maximum of $40 a document.
The new fee structure will be $1 a page for the first five pages and 40 cents for each
additional page, up to a maximum cost of $50 a document.
“In the spirit of increased home and remote access to court services, we have introduced several
new online capabilities in recent months and we are now modifying the pricing for documents
purchased online,” said Mike Roddy, San Diego Superior Court executive officer.
“We hope this new fee structure will encourage court users who need copies of civil, small claims and probate documents to go online, rather than coming into the courthouse and waiting in line.”
Officials estimate that up to 79% of document download customers will see savings. They’ll
pay $6.50 less for a one-page document, for example.
Last year, San Diego Superior Court’s revenue for document downloads was $1.2 million. The changes will result in lower revenues in 2021, court spokeswoman Emily Cox told Courthouse News.
The fee changes were announced Thursday by Chief Judge Larry Alan Burns of the San Diego federal court district and San Diego Superior Court Presiding Judge Lorna Alksne in their final state of the courts address.
The state of the court address was hosted by the San Diego County Bar Association and moderated by Johanna Schiavoni, the group’s president.
Copies continue to be available for in-person requests at the court’s business offices and on
research kiosks in the local courthouses for a fee of 50 cents a page, including documents that
are not posted online.
On the federal level, documents downloaded via PACER — Public Access to Court Electronic Records — cost a flat 10 cents a page. But a class action lawsuit is challenging that price, and members of Congress even argue for free downloads.
The Open Courts Act of 2020 — H.R. 8235 — passed the House on Dec. 8, but the Senate has yet to act.
