The Chron on the District Clerk race

You really should read the Chron story on the District Clerk race, since it sums up pretty nicely why Loren Jackson has done such a great job. It starts with an anecdote you’d have read on Mark Bennett’s blog and goes from there.

In the 22 months since [November 2008], Jackson has vastly increased the numbers and kinds of court documents available online. He has made public an online criminal background check tool that previously only government employees could use. He is testing an electronic filing system aimed at giving local lawyers an alternative to the state’s more expensive system. His team set up a docketing notification system that informs attorneys when their cases are scheduled.

Jackson, a Democrat, has been a darling of local lawyers because he has saved them trips to the courthouse as well as saved taxpayers’ money in staff time at windows and scanning machines. Texas Lawyer called him a “technology geek” and mentioned his claim that no county in the country provides as much online access to court records.

In fact, Jackson has received little criticism in his 22 months on the job, even from Republicans.

Do a good enough job and the people you do it for will want you to keep doing it. Jackson’s opponent then makes a ridiculous claim about – I kid you not – terrorists that isn’t worth quoting because life is too short for stuff like that. So go read the Chron story, and when you’re done with that go read Murray Newman and Bennett again for more. And then tell your friends to vote for Loren Jackson.

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6 Responses to The Chron on the District Clerk race

  1. Charles, I do not know anyone who has any meaningful interaction with the District Clerk’s office who is not supporting Jackson’s re-election.

  2. Ron in Houston says:

    Can we, or will we, ever create a class of offices that would be immune from the lever pullers?

    If there is ever a clear case where the lever pullers should have no say, it’s this election for District Clerk.

  3. Bill Kelly says:

    I found a secret YouTube video with the Republican plan to become County Clerk:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YOh-rpvjYg

  4. Bill Kelly says:

    *District Clerk . . . sorry Loren!

  5. Kenneth Fair says:

    I agree with Tom Kirkendall. What Jackson has been able to achieve in just the past couple of years in records accessibility is nothing short of amazing. He’s saved my clients money that they would otherwise have had to spend on my time rooting around through records down at the courthouse.

  6. Kenneth Fair says:

    A followup to my earlier post – I just received the following email from the district clerk’s office:

    Dear Valued Customer,

    The Office of Harris County District Clerk Loren Jackson is pleased to announce a new upgrade to our website. A civil trial verdict search feature on http://www.hcdistrictclerk.com will be available as of Tuesday, October 05, 2010. This search feature will allow users to search for both civil jury and civil non-jury trial verdicts by verdict date range, court, case number, or type of verdict. To use this feature, click on the Search Our Records and Documents link on our website http://www.hcdistrictclerk.com and then click on the Verdicts tab near the top of the search screen.

    We hope that you find this new feature helpful. Please feel free to send us feedback on how these new features help you or what else we can do to better serve you.

    It’s these steady improvements in accessibility that have made me a big fan of Loren Jackson.

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