A vendor-neutral requirements checklist for court software

Written so any vendor can answer it. Adapt it to your agency’s own specification; it is a checklist for evaluating responses, not solicitation text.

Requirements by capability

Case management: Case types, statuses, workflows, forms, and calendars configurable by the agency without vendor services
Document management with role-based access and record-level restriction for sealed matters
A complete, attributed audit trail on every record
Communications: Text, email, voice, and mail from one record, in the languages the community speaks
Consent, opt-in, and opt-out handling with a documented compliance approach
Two-way messaging with staff review and escalation
Scheduling: Hearing, appointment, and check-in scheduling with automated reminders
Rescheduling paths the public can complete without a phone call
Supervision: Automated check-ins, condition tracking, and alerts before a violation
Officer caseload views and reporting
Payments: Online payment and payment plans with reminders
Reconciliation and reporting to finance
Filings and warrants: Electronic filing, routing, review, and signature with state repository connections where required
Analytics: Dashboards and scheduled reports across departments and jurisdictions
Export of any report in standard formats
Security and hosting: CJIS compliance and the hosting authorization, stated in the certifier’s own wording
SSO, role-based access, multi-factor authentication, and encryption in transit and at rest
Uptime commitment and incident response, in the contract
Accessibility and languages: WCAG 2.2 AA conformance with a published VPAT
The number of languages supported for the public
Data ownership and portability: Bulk export of all agency data in documented formats, as a product capability rather than a services engagement
Open REST API and SFTP for the systems the agency keeps
Implementation and training: A written scope and phase plan before work starts
Data conversion with reconciliation the agency can review
A parallel-run period before anything is retired
Training on the agency’s own configuration
Pricing and terms: Published pricing, or a written quote before the budget request
What is and is not included in the annual price

Questions worth asking any vendor, including eCourtDate

Each one links to where eCourtDate answers it, so the evaluator can check rather than take our word.

Where is our data hosted, and under what authorization, in the certifier’s own words?
eCourtDate’s hosting and compliance
Can our agency export all of its data, in documented formats, without a services engagement?
Data lifecycle and export
Is pricing published, and what does the annual price include?
Published pricing
How is a conversion reconciled, and how long do both systems run in parallel?
The Modernization Program
Which standards does the product conform to, and where is the conformance documented?
Accessibility conformance
Who can change configuration after go-live, the agency or the vendor?
Case management
Where do the outcome numbers come from?
Methodology behind the numbers

Invite eCourtDate to respond

Share your solicitation and our team will review it and follow your agency’s designated process. Or see the platform on a demo first.

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