« Courts - "The Supreme Court ruled against executing the mentally retarded, but defining that group has proved difficult" | Main | Environment - Important CERCLA-related SCOTUS opinion issued today »

Monday, June 11, 2007

Ind. Courts - Supreme Court signs $11 million contract with Tyler Technologies [Updated]

From a lengthy Tyler Technologies press release that begins:

DALLAS, June 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tyler Technologies, Inc. announced today that the Indiana Supreme Court has signed a contract for Tyler to provide and implement its Odyssey software to manage cases for Indiana trial courts. The contract, which followed a lengthy competitive procurement and includes software licensing and professional services for training and deployment, is valued at approximately $11 million, with additional services expected to be added later through follow-on agreements.

"With more than 1.5 million cases filed in Indiana courts each year, Hoosier law enforcement officers, lawyers, government agencies and citizens need timely and accurate court information. Indiana courts and court clerks must have a 21st century computer system to help them manage their caseloads and provide court information to those who need it. While many individual courts have computerized case management systems today, we believe Tyler offers us the best opportunity to equip Indiana courts with a 21st century case management system and to connect those systems with each other and with those who need and use court information," said Justice Frank Sullivan, Jr., chair of the Supreme Court's Judicial Technology and Automation Committee (JTAC).

Odyssey is Tyler's new generation Web-based court case management solution for the state and local government market. A unified case management system as defined by the National Center for State Courts, Tyler's Odyssey system enables courts to automate all case management functions -- imaging, accounting, docketing, calendaring, reporting, forms merge and others -- for all case types, in a single software package. Tyler's Odyssey system is currently deployed statewide in Minnesota and New Hampshire, and eight of the nation's 35 largest counties have signed contracts with Tyler to implement Odyssey.

"We are extremely pleased that the Indiana Supreme Court has chosen to implement Tyler's Odyssey Case Manager solution statewide," commented Dustin Womble, Executive Vice President of Tyler Technologies. "The Court conducted an extremely thorough evaluation of competing courts software products, and Tyler emerged as the clear choice. We look forward to continuing to build what we believe will be a long and mutually rewarding partnership between Tyler and the state of Indiana. In our view, Odyssey is now firmly established as the courts software market leader, and our combination of advanced technology, deep domain expertise, and strong client references from across the nation enables us to continue to build momentum in the courts marketplace."

The most recent information on the Court's website is this from May 24th:
Small Portion of CMS Successfully Tested in an Indiana Courthouse

Tyler Technologies LogoJTAC is working with Tyler Technologies, Inc., to implement Odyssey in a phased approach. Phases 0 and 1 are currently in progress. During these two phases, Odyssey will be implemented in two pilot locations: all Monroe County Circuit Courts and Washington Township Small Claims Court in Marion County. Odyssey is anticipated to be live in these courts by the end of 2007.

Chief Justice Randall Shepard shared a project update on May 21, 2007. He wrote: “Proof-of-Concept” (POC) labs are currently being held with the pilot courts to determine what changes need to be made to Odyssey so that it meets the needs and requirements of Indiana law and practice. After POC labs are complete, the system will be setup, configured and tested for deployment in the pilot courts.

The rollout of Odyssey to other Indiana courts will begin after the pilot courts are live and will follow a phased approach.

That May 24th announcement followed this May 21st ILB entry that began:
This ILB entry from May 9th on the status of the Indiana Court's long-in-getting-off-the-ground case management system pointed out that "since the announcement of a vendor Nov. 6, 2006, there has in fact been no news - the official site has not been updated." There have been, however, two different stories in the Bloomington Herald-Times this spring indicating that something was about in Monroe County.

Now, however, there is some news, in the form of an e-mail sent Friday May 18 to all Indiana Courts and Clerks, sent on behalf of Chief Justice Randall Shepard & Justice Frank Sullivan, Jr.

Here is a list of earlier ILB entries referencing the JTAC project.

[Updated 3:30 pm] The Tyler Technologies press release has now been added to the JTAC site. However, there is no accompanying information from the Indiana end. The May update explained:

Our current contract with Tyler requires a detailed assessment of the functions of Odyssey and the functions required by the Indiana Supreme Court. We are continuing contract negotiations for subsequent phases of the contract and specific statement of work requirements.
What part does the newly announced $11 million contract play in this explanation?

Posted by Marcia Oddi on June 11, 2007 10:18 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts