Annex C

The Ethiopian Federal Courts’

Business Requirements Document (BRD)

For

Electronic Records Management System (eRMS)

Date: November 1, 2021

RFP Number: FETEH 2021-01
USAID Contract No. 72066319F00001

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Contents
Acronyms ........................................................................................................................................ 4

Definitions....................................................................................................................................... 5

1. Executive Summary ................................................................................................................. 7

2. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 10

3. About the Federal Courts:...................................................................................................... 10

4. Objective of this Document: .................................................................................................. 12

5. Scope of the eRMS Development Project: ............................................................................ 13

6. eRMS Business Requirements of the Federal Courts:........................................................... 14

6.1. Records Management in the Federal Courts .................................................................. 14

6.1.1. General .................................................................................................................... 14

6.1.2. Types of Court Records .......................................................................................... 18

6.1.3. Electronic Records .................................................................................................. 20

6.1.4. Hybrid Files and Hybrid Records ........................................................................... 22

6.1.5. Court Records Creation & Capture ......................................................................... 23

6.1.6. Court Records Classification .................................................................................. 24

6.1.7. Court Records Location Tracking ........................................................................... 26

6.1.8. Confidential and Sealed Records ............................................................................ 27

6.1.9. Public Access to Court Records .............................................................................. 28

6.1.10. Integrity and Security of Court Records ................................................................. 29

6.1.11. Backup and Storage of Electronic Records ............................................................ 30

6.1.12. Retention, Disposal, and Preservation of Electronic Court Records ...................... 31

6.1.13. Electronic Signatures on Court Records ................................................................. 32

6.2. Functional Requirements: .............................................................................................. 34

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 6.3. Non-Functional Requirements: ...................................................................................... 45

7. Users of the eRMS:................................................................................................................ 47

7.1. eRMS Administrators..................................................................................................... 47

7.2. eRMS Help Desk Officers.............................................................................................. 48

7.3. Records Management Officers ....................................................................................... 48

7.4. Record Owners ............................................................................................................... 48

7.5. Record Users .................................................................................................................. 49

7.6. iCMIS (Integrated Case Management Information System).......................................... 49

7.7. AFIS (Administrative and Finance Information System) .............................................. 49

7.8. Email System.................................................................................................................. 50

7.9. Desktop Applications ..................................................................................................... 50

8. Solution Requirements: ......................................................................................................... 50

9. Transition Requirements: ...................................................................................................... 50

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Acronyms

a.k.a. Also known as

AFIS Administrative and Finance Information Systems
BCS Business Classification Scheme
BRD Business Requirements Document
CCMS Court Case Management System
CD Compact Disk
DVD Digital Video Disk
eFiling Electronic Filing
eFLS eFiling and Litigation System
eLitigation Electronic Litigation
eRMS Electronic Records Management System
FFIC Federal First Instance Court
FHC Federal High Court
FSC Federal Supreme Court
FSCE Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia
iCMIS Integrated Case Management Information System
ICT Information and Communication Technology
ISO International Standards Organization
IT Information Technology
PMO Project Management Office
RFP Request for Proposal
SRS Software Requirements Specification
SRS Software Requirements Specification
ToT Training of Trainers
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USB Universal Serial Bus

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Definitions

The definitions of the following words used in this document are drawn from ISO 15489-1:2020,
Information and documentation – Records management – Part 1 – Concepts and principles.

Access Right, opportunity, means of finding, using or retrieving court

records.
Business Records management tool for linking records to the context of their
Classification creation.
Scheme
Classification Systematic identification and/or arrangement of business activities
and/or records into categories according to logically structured
conventions, methods, and procedural rules.
Conversion Process of changing records from one format to another.
Destruction Process of eliminating or deleting a record, beyond any possible
reconstruction.
Disposition Range of processes associated with implementing records retention,
destruction, or transfer decisions which are documented in
disposition authorities or other instruments.
Disposition Instrument that defines the disposition actions that are authorized
Authority for specified records.
Metadata for Structured or semi-structured information, which enables the
Records creation, management, and use of records through time and within
and across domains.
Migration Process of moving records from one hardware or software
configuration to another without changing format.
Records Information created, received and maintained as evidence and as an
asset by an organization or person, in pursuit of legal obligations or
in the transaction of business.
Records Field of management responsible for efficient and systematic
Management control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use and disposition or

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 records, including processes for capturing and maintaining evidence
of and information about business activities and transactions in the
form of records.
Records System Information system which captures, manages, and provides access
to records over time. A records system can consist of technical
elements such as software, which may be designed specifically for
managing records or for some business purpose, and non-technical
elements including policy, procedures, people, and other agents and
assigned responsibilities.
Schema Logical plan showing the relationships between metadata elements,
normally through establishing rules for the use and management of
metadata specifically as regards the semantics, the syntax and the
optionality (obligation level) of values.
Transaction Smallest unit of work process consisting of an exchange between
two or more participants or systems.
Work Process One or more sequences of actions required to produce an outcome
that complies with governing rules.

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1. Executive Summary

This document is produced through the consultancy support provided to the Federal Supreme
Court of Ethiopia (FSCE) from the USAID Feteh (Activity) in Ethiopia, herein after called
Feteh.
A well-functioning records management is fundamental to a well-functioning judiciary since
it supports the courts’ business activities and provides a basis for efficient service delivery. It
also provides the mechanism whereby litigants and judicial and non-judicial staff can account
for their actions. Records provide evidence for services and decisions provided. Moreover,
good records management is simply good business practice. To be able to obtain these benefits,
in parallel with the works for the efforts to develop a new Integrated Case Management
Information System (iCMIS) that will replace the current outdated case management system,
the Federal Courts’ are now working to establish Electronic Records Management System
(eRMS).

The scope of the Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Development Project is to
design, develop, implement, and provide two-year warranty services for eRMS software of the
Federal Courts. eRMS will be an integrated system that will automate the entire Records
Management process in the Federal Courts in a manner that incorporates the entire records
management functions, i.e., records capture, classification, retention, disposition, integrity,
maintenance, discovery, use, and sharing.

The eRMS will support the management of any type of electronic records, including text, data,
image, audio, and video records, as well the management of non-electronic records. The eRMS
will include systems for implementing records management standards (like ISO 15489 and
ISO 16175) and best practices.

eRMS will be designed and developed to serve the Federal Courts’ business. To this end the
system will have internal integration with iCMIS as well as the Administrative and Finance
Information Systems (AFIS) of the Federal Courts.

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This eRMS Business Requirements Document (BRD) includes the following:
(1) Section 3 presents the mandates and organization of the Federal Courts,
(2) Section 4 presents the objective of this document,
(3) Section 5 presents the scope of the eRMS application software development project.
(4) Section 6 in detail presents the eRMS business requirements of the Federal Courts. Under
this section (i) Records Management in the Federal Courts, (ii) Functional Requirements,
and (iii) Non-Functional Requirements are presented. Under the sub-section of Records
Management in the Federal Courts the following are covered:
• General discussion of records and records management from the relevant ISO
standards and courts’ services point of view,
• Detailed listing of the types of court records, in the Ethiopian Federal Courts, based
on the Civil and Criminal procedure codes,
• Detailed discussion of electronic records, with specific focus on court records,
• Hybrid files and hybrid records, i.e., files and records maintained both on paper
and electronic formats,
• Court records creation and capture, from courts point of view,
• Court records classification, in the context of courts,
• Court records location tracking,
• Confidential and sealed records, in the context of courts,
• Public access to court records,
• Integrity and security of court records,
• Backup and storage of electronic court records,
• Retention, disposal, and preservation of electronic court records,
• Electronic signature on court records.
The functional requirements sub-section in-detail presents the following, from records
management business point of view:
• Electronic records management general requirements of the Federal Courts,
• Records capture requirements,

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 • Records classification requirements,
• Non-Electronic records management requirements,
• Requirements for control access to electronic records,
• Storage, search, and retrieval requirements,
• Retention and disposal requirements,
• Metadata requirements,
• Discovery and disclosure requirements,
• Records migration requirements, to avoid records loss due to technology
obsolescence,
• Management and administration of electronic records and eRMS,
The Non-Functional Requirements define the following:
• Ease-of-use requirements,
• Performance requirements,
• Scalability requirements,
• Availability requirements
Overall, this Business Requirements Document provides the foundation for the specification,
design, development and implementation of eRMS software for the Federal courts that would
fully support all the judicial, quasi-judicial, and non-judicial processes in the courts with
modern records management information systems.

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2. Introduction

This document, together with the following documents:

1) The Ethiopian Federal Courts’ Software Requirements Specification (SRS) for the
Development and Implementation of Electronic Records Management System (eRMS);
2) Request for Proposal (RFP) for Electronic Records Management System (eRMS)
Application Software Development and Implementation to the Ethiopian Federal Courts;
the business requirements, software specification, and the RFP required for hiring a software
development company that will develop, implement, and provide technical support the new
digital records and archive information system for the Ethiopian Federal Courts, entitled
“Electronic Records Management System (eRMS)”.

3. About the Federal Courts:

As per the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) Article 78(1),
an independent judiciary is established. The Constitution Article 78(2) vests the supreme
Federal judicial authority in the Federal Supreme Court.

The Federal Courts are comprised of the Federal Supreme Court (FSC), the Federal High Court
(FHC), and the Federal First Instance Court (FFIC). 1

The Federal Courts have jurisdiction over the following 2:

a) Cases arising under the Constitution, Federal Laws and International Treaties accepted and
ratified by Ethiopia;
b) Parties specified in Federal Law,
c) Places specified in the Constitution or by Federal Law.
The permanent places of sitting3 of the Federal Courts, as determined by law are:
• Federal Supreme Court in Addis Ababa,
• Federal High Court and First Instance Court in Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa, and

1FederalCourts Proclamation No. 1234/2021, Article 2(3)

2Ibid,Article 3
3Proclamation No. 1234/2021 Article 30 and Proclamation No. 322 Article 2

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 • Federal High Court in Afar, Benishangul, Gambella, Somali, and Southern Nations and
Nationalities and Peoples (SNNP).
Besides these, where the Federal Courts find it necessary, they hold circuit hearings in any
place within the Region or area designated for their jurisdiction.

The Federal Courts can receive cases originating anywhere in the country, but most of the cases
at trial level, in the FFIC and FHC, come from the Federal cities, Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa.
The FHC and FSC also function as courts of appeal. The FSC is the sole Court of Cassation.
Cassation cases come not only from the Federal jurisdiction but from regional and municipal
judiciaries. Two additional features are important in shaping demand in the Federal Courts:
court fees are very low and legal representation is not required.

The President of the FSC is responsible for the administration of Federal Courts in accordance
with the law. 4

The Federal Courts working language is Amharic. 5 The courts shall provide a competent
interpreter to a person who does not understand Amharic language. 6

All cases in Federal Courts are required to be heard in open court, except in consideration of
the right to privacy of the parties concerned, National Security, and public morality and public
decency. 7 However, the lack of adequate and proper court premises makes fulfilling this
mandate challenging.
The Mission, Vision, and Values of the Federal Courts as provided in the Federal Courts’
Annual Plan for 2019/20 are presented below. 8
Mission

4Proclamation No. 1234/2021, Article 17(1)

5 Ibid, Article 31(1)
6Ibid, Article 31(2)
7Ibid, Article 32
8
የፌዴራል ፍርድ ቤቶች የ2012 በጀት ዓመት ዕቅድ (The Federal Courts’ Annual Plan for 2019/20)

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 The Mission 9 of the Federal Courts is:
“Providing judicial services that ensure supremacy of law.”

Vision:
The Vision 10 of the Federal Courts is:
“Becoming a Court that has higher level of public trust by 2022/23.”

Values:
The values 11 of the Federal Courts are:
(1) Equality and Justice,
(2) Independence, Impartiality, and Transparency,
(3) Sincerity and Honesty,
(4) Competence, and
(5) Responsiveness.

Application of information and communication technology (ICT) in the administration of the

Federal Courts (and the Ethiopian Courts in general) is believed to have increased the
efficiency of the delivery of justice to the public. Though much is yet to be done to maximize
the value of ICT investments in the Federal Courts, there is a general agreement among both
the management and staff of the Federal Courts that ICT is supporting the services of the
Federal Courts.

4. Objective of this Document:

The objective of this document is to define the Ethiopian Federal Courts’ eRMS business
requirements (i.e., the functional and non-functional requirements).

9
The Mission is written in Amharic as የህግ የበላይነትን የሚያረጋግጥ የዳኝነትአገልግሎትመስጠት፣ (Translation by IT
Consultant)

10
The Mission is written in Amharic as በ2015 ያደገ የህዝብ ዓመኔታ ያለው ፍ/ቤት ሆኖ መገኘት ነው፤ (Translation by IT
Consultant)

11
The Mission is written in Amharic as (1) እኩልነትናፍትሃዊነት፣ (2) ነፃነት፣ገለልተኝነት፣ግልጽነት፣ (3) ቅንነትና ታማኝነት፣ (4) ሙያዊ ብቃት፣ (5)
ምላሽ ሰጪነት፣ (Translation by this consultant)

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5. Scope of the eRMS Development Project:
The scope of the eRMS Development Project is to design, develop, implement the eRMS
software for the Federal Courts and also provide the courts with two years of software warranty
services.

eRMS will be an integrated system that will automate the entire Records Management
processes in the Federal Courts to incorporate the functions depicted on the following figure.

eRMS

Records Capture and Classification Records Retention and Disposition

• Creation, capture, and import • Retention, review, transfer, and
• Metadata capture destruction
• Business classification scheme • Migration and export
• Classes, Files, & Volumes

Records Integrity and Maintenance Discovery, Use, and Sharing

• Authenticity and security • Search, retrieval, presentation, use,
• Storage, reporting and metadata and interoperability
management • Security classification
• Access restrictions and permissions
• Duplication, extraction, and
redaction

Figure 2: eRMS Functional Areas

This document defines the Federal Courts’ business requirements for effectively performing
the eRMS functions.

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 The eRMS will be designed and developed to serve the Federal Courts’ business. To this end
the system will be integrated with iCMIS and will have Application Programming Interface
(API) for integration with an upcoming Administrative and Finance Information Systems
(AFIS) of the Federal Courts.

The eRMS will support the management of any type of electronic record, including text, data,
image, audio, and video records, as well as non-electronic records, it will also support systems
for implementing records management standards (like ISO 15489 and ISO 16175) and best
practices.

6. eRMS Business Requirements of the Federal Courts:

6.1. Records Management in the Federal Courts

6.1.1. General

A well-functioning records management is fundamental to a well-functioning judiciary since

it supports the courts’ business activity and provides a basis for efficient service delivery. It
also provides the mechanism whereby litigants and the judicial and non-judicial staff can
account for their actions, as records provide evidence for services and decisions provided.
Moreover, good records management is simply good business practice.

As per the definition of ISO 15489-1:2020, records are information created, received, and
maintained as evidence and as an asset by an organization or person, in pursuit of legal
obligations or in the transaction of business. This standard defines records management as a
field of management responsible for the efficient and systematic control of the creation, receipt,
maintenance, use, and disposition of records, including processes for capturing and
maintaining evidence of the information about business activities and transactions in the form
of records.

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Records management is a key success factor in the judicial system. A systematic, efficient and
organized records management system provides comprehensive information for courts to
guarantee sound and unbiased judicial decision. Transparent information system and good
records management contribute to minimizing the misuse of power, corruption, unreasonable
case postponement and delayed decision. Good records management also supports good public
image of the judiciary in upholding the rights of the individuals and the society at large.
A comprehensive records management program covers the creation, maintenance, retention,
and destruction of court records. Each component may have several elements and objectives.

The creation of the court record involves two sets of information: (1) documents and other
information provides by the parties, and (2) documentation of the court activities and decisions.
The first set aids the court in making its decisions, for example, pleadings, motions, exhibits,
and so forth. The second set includes matters related to calendaring and case management, as
well as decisions of the court.

The maintenance of the court record addresses the continued existence and accessibility of the
record, through different methods, including the following:
(1) Keeping the records in a manner that ensures their completeness and availability both
during the life of an active case and after it is closed,
(2) Keeping the records in a manner that allows easy and convenient access to those wanting
to see it,
(3) Enabling convenient and inexpensive copying of the records, and
(4) Keeping the records in the formats that allow the records’ ready access over time, despite
changes in technology, in particular, obsolescence of equipment and software required to
access electronic forms of a record.
(5) Preserving the record’s integrity so as to ensure that the court record is the whole record
and nothing but the record. To this end, the system for maintaining court records should
minimize the risk of misfiling, loss, or damage of the court record or any of its parts.

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A good records management program should provide convenient and timely access to those
allowed to see information and prevent access by those not authorized to see it. In the context
of courts, there may be portions of the court record that, by law or judicial decision, are
accessible only to certain individuals, parties, or groups of individuals based on their role in
the justice system. For this reason, records management also involves controlling access record
or its component parts.

Access control involves rules and mechanisms by which the eRMS will restrict access to
records by users, which include:
(1) Identification of users (e.g., through user name),
(2) Authentication of users (e.g., through secret password known only by the user),
(3) Authorization of users through granting access rights,
(4) Rendering a document unreadable to users through encryption, unless they are in
possession of decryption key,
(5) Using digital signatures to ensure the authenticity of messages, and
(6) Using audit trail to keep evidence of the activities of authenticated users when using the
eRMS.

Records are retained for varying lengths of time, known as “retention period”. The retention
period of a court record relates to how long it must be available to the public. Some court
records must be retained indefinitely; others have a limited “shelf life” and need not be
retained. The factors that usually determine the retention period of a record are related to: legal
requirements, industry standards, continuing relevance, and public interest with respect to the
record.

The disposal of a court record is the final stage of records management process in courts. When
the existence of a court record is no longer required, based on passage of time or a policy
decision by the court, the record should be properly disposed. Whether the record will be

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destroyed, or made accessible only to certain groups (e.g., transfer to national archive), etc. is
a matter to be determined by the court’s records management policy.

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6.1.2. Types of Court Records

The following list shows the types of records involved in the court processes defined in the
Ethiopian Civil and Criminal Procedure Codes respectively.
The processes under the Civil Procedure Code include the following types of records:
1) Various types of pleadings submitted by parties to the courts including:
i. statement of claim,
ii. list of evidence,
iii. evidence,
iv. statement of defense,
v. preliminary objection,
vi. courter-claim,
vii. memorandum of appeal,
viii. memorandum of response,
ix. lower court judgment and decision,
x. the file of the lower court from which the judgment appealed from,
xi. cross objection,
xii. reply,
xiii. counter-reply,
xiv. application,
xv. petition,
xvi. affidavit,
xvii. further pleadings, and
xviii. any other document originating proceedings or filed in reply thereto,
2) Record about the admission or rejection of statement of claim or statement of defense
by a registrar or judge,
3) Record about court fees, security deposits, and money paid into court based on an
order/decision, etc.
4) Records of hearings,
5) Records issued by judge including:

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 i. summons,
ii. motion,
iii. various types of court orders,
iv. notices,
v. decisions,
vi. judgments,
vii. decrees, and
viii. appointment of an arbitrator, mediator, execution officer, expert, receiver,
pleader, guardian.

The processes under the Criminal Procedure Code include the following types of records:
1) Various types of pleadings submitted by police, prosecutor, and the accused to the
courts including:
i. applications,
ii. list of evidences,
iii. evidences,
iv. exhibits,
v. statement of accused,
vi. charges,
vii. objections to charge,
viii. statement of prosecutor to objection,
ix. plea of the accused,
x. amendment of a plea,
xi. any other document originating proceedings or filed in reply thereto,
2) Record about rejection of applications by judge,
3) Records of hearings,
4) Records issued by judge including:
i. search warrant,
ii. bench warrant,
iii. arrest warrant,

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 iv. summons,
v. notices,
vi. various type of court orders,
vii. decisions,
viii. judgment,
ix. sentence, and
x. appointment of execution officer

The provision of a complete, accurate, and accessible court record, that is created and
available in -a timely manner, fulfills one of the judiciary’s basic roles. The court record
not only provides a record of the court’s decisions but also educates the public and
establishes societal norms for behavior governed by the law.

6.1.3. Electronic Records

An electronic record is information produced by, or with the aid of, a computer or other
electronic device. An electronic record may be stored on a variety of electronic media (e.g.,
a hard disk, a solid-state drive, a USB or thumb drive, a CD, or a DVD).

Electronic court records may include:

• pleadings and annexes filed through eFiling,
• scanned copies of pleading and annexes filed in paper,
• data submitted as part of other filed case records (e.g., fillable forms or electronic
filings);
• documents (e.g., orders, judgments, motions, and declarations);
• electronically stored exhibits (e.g., photographs, video, and audio recordings); and
• electronic recordings of oral proceedings.
The fact that an electronic device is needed to create and maintain a record does not alter
the court record, although the methods used to store and manage electronic records are, of
course, different than those used for paper records.

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In their current practice, the Federal Courts convert paper records to electronic records by
using a document scanner to create digital images of paper records, reviewing the images
on a computer, and storing them in a document repository. During the scanning process,
basic information about individual records (e.g., case number) are manually entered, which
can later be used to create an index. Under a proper setup of electronic records management
practice, the resulting electronic record will be reviewed for quality assurance and stored.

Courts can also create original electronic records and may receive records through
electronic filing (or e-filing) systems. Under the new e-filing system to be introduced in
the Federal Courts, the system will ensure that submitted documents are associated with
their corresponding metadata, i.e., case record identification and tracking information, such
as case number, title, case type, parties name and addresses, submission date and time, and
the like.

Electronic court records of the Federal Courts will be stored on central storage systems
with redundant backup storage that is linked to and managed by the eRMS. The iCMIS
which will include eFiling and case management system will be linked to the eRMS for
the management of the court records.

For electronic records, the Federal Courts will adopt the most appropriate file format to use
for long-term access and preservation. In choosing the file format, the Federal Courts will
consider current and future compatibility within the Federal courts and between the courts
and their justice sector partners (like the Attorney General Office, the Federal Police, and
Prisons Administration), as well as accessibility for the public. Based on these
considerations, the Federal Courts have selected an electronic file format that is:
• based on open standards and nonproprietary;
• widely used and accepted; and
• stable, well-supported, and well-documented.
PDF/A is the selected file format for Federal Courts as it is the best for long-
term/permanent preservation of electronic records.

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 Overall, the eRMS will comply with the following basic records management principles,
i.e.:
(1) The creation, capture, and management of the Federal Courts’ records (i.e., court and
administrative records) should be an integral part of conducting the Federal Courts’
business,
(2) The Federal Courts’ records, regardless of their form or structure, should be used as
authoritative evidence of the Federal Courts’ business, when they possess the
characteristics of authenticity, reliability, and usability of records,
(3) The Federal Courts’ records should consist of content and metadata, which describe the
context, content, and structure of the records, as well as their management through time,
(4) Decisions regarding the creation, capture, and management of the Federal Courts’
records should be based on analysis of the Federal Courts’ business activities as well
as the legal and regulatory requirements,
(5) The Federal Courts’ eRMS, regardless of their degree of automation, should enable the
application of records controls and the execution of processes for creating, capturing,
and managing records.

6.1.4. Hybrid Files and Hybrid Records

A court records repository may contain records on paper, electronic records, and records
on other media such as video and audio cassettes. Due to regulatory and court services
reasons, courts may need to retain both electronic and physical (non-electronic) records.
Most systems used for court records management serve both types of records, i.e., they
are hybrid systems. Hybrid systems allow the management of both electronic and
physical records.

For physical records that cannot be electronically captured and registered directly into
the business system, the business system must create and maintain markers – metadata
profiles of physical records – to maintain linkages between the physical and aggregations

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 of electronic records (i.e., electronic files). Generally the marker will identify the title
and unique identifier of the physical record, outline the record’s content and provide
location information for retrieval.

Hybrid files: A hybrid file exists where a related set of physical files and aggregations of
electronic records (electronic files) deals with the same function, activity or transaction,
and must be managed as a single file.

Hybrid records: Electronic records can be linked to physical records or files through a
tightly bound metadata relationship to form a hybrid record. In much the same way that
physical files and aggregations of electronic records can be linked to create hybrid files.
The metadata link between the electronic and physical records will be established through
the marker, which will identify the physical record and its location. The marker may be
attached directly to the electronic record component of the hybrid record.

6.1.5. Court Records Creation & Capture

Creation, capture, and maintenance of case records are the most basic and critical
functions performed by courts. The case record consists of documents filed by advocates,
self-represented litigants, prosecutors, and other case parties who submit documents to
the court. In some instances, courts also create and file documents that become part of
the case record.

Records creation and capture, among others, are two major functions of records
management. “Creation” is about the process of producing new information as record,
whereas “Capture” is about the process of getting the information prepared as record into
the eRMS and recording their metadata. An example of records creation in courts can be
writing minutes or transcript of hearings and saving them as part of the respective case
file within the eRMS. An example of records capture in courts can be scanning pleadings
submitted to courts in paper and saving them as part of its respective case file.

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 Currently, the Federal Courts receive legal documents for filing and processing through
various means including over the counter in the Registrar office of the courts, as an
attachment to email (often referred to as e-delivery), and, in the near future, by e-filing.

The numbering system for cases filed in courts must ensure that each case has a unique
number to minimize confusion and facilitate locating and filing the case and its associated
documents. The Civil Procedure Code Article 214 provides that the registrar shall cause
the particulars of every suit to be entered in a book kept for the purpose and called the
register of civil suits. Such entries shall be numbered in every year according to the order
in which the statements of claim are admitted. Unlike the provision of the code, in their
current practice, the Federal Courts use consecutive numbering system for cases that
extends from year to year.

E-filing is the new/upcoming electronic records processing in the Federal Courts. Instead
of delivering paper documents to the court, litigants and advocates will send an electronic
version of their pleadings to the court, via the Federal Courts eFiling and Litigation
system (eFLS) web portal, through the Internet.

6.1.6. Court Records Classification

As per the definition of ISO 15489-1:2020, classification is the systematic identification

and/or arrangement of business activities and/or records into categories according to
logically structured conventions, methods, and procedural rules. A business classification
scheme is a tool for linking records to the context of their creation. Therefore, a
classification scheme is the structure an organization uses for organizing,
accessing/retrieving, storing, and managing its records.

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 Classifying records in a hierarchical business classification scheme (BCS) provides the
following benefits 12:
1) providing linkages between individual records, which accumulate to provide a
continuous record of activity,
2) ensuring records are named in a consistent manner over time,
3) assisting in the retrieval of all records relating to a particular function or activity,
4) determining security protection and access appropriate for sets of records,
5) allocating user permissions for access to, or action on, particular groups of records,
6) distributing responsibility for management of particular sets of records,
7) distributing records for action, and
8) determining appropriate retention periods and disposition actions for records.

In the classification of court records, there are distinctions between case categories and
case types. For records management purposes, sometimes case records are organized by
case category, e.g., civil or criminal. Case records can also be organized by subcategory
or case type, e.g., under criminal case category, case type can be “petty offences”.

A Case is a dispute between at least two parties that is adjudicated and decided in
a court of law. A case is uniquely identified by Case Number. Other major identifiers
for cases are names and addresses of parties, case category, case type, court name, bench
name, judge name, etc.

Based on the Ethiopian Civil and Criminal Procedure codes, a case is divided into two
major categories, Civil and Criminal.

The Civil Case category is classified into the following Case Types, based on the Civil
Procedure Code,
(1) Family,

12 AIIM ERM Practitioner Course, Module 4 – Classification, by Tony Korn

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 (2) Labor,
(3) Succession,
(4) Contract,
(5) Extra-contractual,
(6) Copyright and Neighboring Rights,
(7) Construction,
(8) Commercial,
(9) Bank and Insurance,
(10) Administrative Procedure,
(11) Miscellaneous Civil, and
(12) Execution.

Based on the Criminal Code of Ethiopia, the Criminal Case Category is classified into
the following Case Types:
(1) Crimes against interests of the ‘State’,
(2) Crimes against interests of the ‘Community’,
(3) Crimes against interests of the ‘individual’, and
(4) Petty Offences.

Apart from case category and case type, in the Federal Courts, cases are classified based
on jurisdiction: i.e., First Instance, Appeal, and Cassation.

There are some special characteristics that can be attached to each case type, in the
classification scheme. Case type characteristics may include: (1) retention period of the
case record, (2) whether the record has special destruction, deletion, or redaction
requirements, (3) the record status: public, restricted, or confidential; (4) the required
period for the records confidentiality, etc.

6.1.7. Court Records Location Tracking

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 In the Federal Courts where there is proper implementation of color codes for case
numbering and there is proper filing, location and retrieval of court records is easier. But
in many instances, searching for lost or misfiled court records take significant resource
and staff time of courts. By implementing effective records location tracking protocols
significant staff time can be saved.

Properly designed and implemented business classification scheme, comprehensive

metadata capture, and proper filing practices, makes searching and locating records in
electronic filing easier.

6.1.8. Confidential and Sealed Records

Court records, like court orders and judgments, hearing transcripts, minutes, the various
documents filed in or received by the court, and the evidence admitted in court
proceedings, are generally presumed to be open and accessible to the public, unless they
are confidential as a matter of law or are sealed by court order.

Because of this, some types of court records are confidential from the date the records
are created and are never made available to the public. Other types of records may remain
confidential for a period of time, and then become public. In many countries, statute
defines specific case types that are to be maintained as confidential records.

Ethiopia does not have a single and comprehensive legal instrument regulating privacy
and data protection, including the obligations of data controllers and processors, as well
as the rights of data subjects in general. There are, however, provisions that relate to
privacy and data security, including in the 1995 Constitution of the Federal Democratic
Republic of Ethiopia, the 2005 Criminal Code of the Federal Democratic Republic of
Ethiopia, the 1960 Civil Code, the Freedom of the Mass Media and Access to Information
Proclamation No. 590/2008, the National Intelligence and Security Service Re-
establishment Proclamation No. 804/2013, Revised Anti-Corruption Special Procedure

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 and Rules of Evidence (Amendment) Proclamation No. 882/2015, and the Computer
Crime Proclamation No. 958/2016.

The Federal Courts are expected to establish policies and procedures based on which the
record managers in the courts provide “confidential” and/or “Sealed” status to records
and provide the proper management to such records.

6.1.9. Public Access to Court Records

Court records that accurately and officially reflect the work of the court (e.g., court orders
and judgments, official minutes, the various documents filed in or received by the court,
and the evidence admitted in court proceedings) are presumed to be open and accessible
to the public, unless they are confidential as a matter of law or are sealed by court order.

The rules for public hearing and the resultant general understanding for public access to
court records are intended to provide the public with reasonable access to court records
while protecting privacy interests.

These understandings are not intended to give the public a right of access to any court
record that the public is not otherwise legally entitled to access and they do not create
any right of access to records sealed by court order or made confidential by law. These
understandings do not apply to the parties on the case record and their advocates. It also
doesn’t apply to entities or authorities that are entitled by law to have access to such
confidential or private records.

A Federal Court that maintains records in electronic form can provide public electronic
access to them, both remotely and at the courthouse, to the extent it is feasible to do so,
i.e.:

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 (1) All case records, including registers of actions 13 (a.k.a. dockets), calendars, and
indexes 14 in all cases: to the parties on the case, their advocates, both remotely and
on-site (at the courthouse);
(2) Public remote access to the registers of actions (a.k.a. dockets), calendars, and
indexes of non-confidential or non-sealed cases, through the Federal Courts’
website;
(3) Public access to the full records of non-confidential or non-sealed cases in the
access facilities to be arranged within the premises Federal Courts.

For providing public access to electronic records, the eRMS will be integrated with
iCMIS through which the public will be provided web-based access through iCMIS to
records that are determined to be open for the public access.

6.1.10. Integrity and Security of Court Records

The Federal Courts’ electronic court records must be created and maintained in a manner
that ensures accuracy and preserves the integrity of the records throughout their
maintenance. These records must be stored in a manner and place that reasonably ensures
their preservation against loss, theft, damage, or destruction for the prescribed retention
period.

To ensure the integrity and security of the Federal Courts’ electronic records, the
following are expected to be implemented:

13
Registers of actions, also known as dockets, may provide “the title of each case,” “the date of its commencement,” a
chronological list of “every subsequent proceeding in the action with its date,” as well as some or all of the documents filed in the
court.

14
Index is the numerical and alphabetical displays of certain case history through the search capability of a court’s automated case
management system or, in paper-based systems, records used to search for cases numerically or alphabetically. Paper-based indices
are obsolete but must be retained for the required retention period. Each index includes, at a minimum, the case number, party
names, and date of filing.

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 • Protect the integrity of electronic court records, protect the systems on which the
records are kept, and prevent unauthorized alteration or destruction of the records, by
limiting access to them.
• Provide security and certainty by using identity verification or digital signature
(encryption) technologies to confirm the origin, history, and integrity of electronic
court records.
• Develop and implement audit trails to detect and record attempts to access, delete, or
destroy an electronic court record, verify compliance with prescribed security
procedures, and determine whether unauthorized acts have occurred or were
attempted.

6.1.11. Backup and Storage of Electronic Records

The electronic copy of a Federal Court’s record may be the only copy that exists.
Therefore, preservation of that electronic information is critical. Storage of the primary
copy of an electronic record should be reliable. Duplicate copies should be stored in
different locations in case of a disaster. In addition to backup and storage, the Federal
courts should ensure that all electronically stored data can be retrieved today and in the
future.
The Federal courts shall implement data redundancy that provides a solution for data
recovery in the case of system failure or power outage. For this reason, the courts shall
keep their records in two identical and mirrored systems in each of their two datacenter
locations. 15 In addition to this, the courts shall regularly execute replication of records
between the storage servers in the two datacenters twice daily. Since all data is
immediately copied to a mirrored storage system in each site no data will be lost when
one of the systems fail in one datacenter site. Even in the case of a total failure of the
entire storage systems in one datacenter the worst extent of possible data loss, where such
failure happens during working hours, is only half day transaction data. But the

15 Note that there is an infrastructure project currently underway that builds two datacenters for the Federal Courts, in Addis
Ababa, one in the Supreme Court and another in the High Court premises.

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 possibility of total failure of all the storages in one datacenter site is a very unlikely
occurrence.

6.1.12. Retention, Disposal, and Preservation of Electronic Court Records

How long do the Federal Courts need to keep the court records they have stored? What
do the courts do with their records when they no longer have to keep them? Many factors
influence the answer to these questions. The answer to these questions shall be given
through policies and procedures to be issued by the Federal courts.
The Federal courts need a system for setting retention schedules and managing the
retention periods of records and the corresponding planned disposal action to be executed
on the respective records, based on their policy, when records retention periods end.
The records management system must support implementation of legal holds that change
the record status with precedence over retention. Note: the concept of "legal hold" is
applied to indicate that within a records management system where there are occasions
the legal process clashes with retention and disposal of records. The idea behind legal
hold is that a records manager or administrator can - and indeed must - prevent the
disposal or records. The reason is that these records are required, or may be required, in
a legal case. When an information request is pending the organization should not make
decisions to destroy or otherwise remove pertinent records. In normal circumstances
records can be reviewed and disposed of when the predefined retention period matures,
for example after 10 years. Legal hold is a change in record status that takes precedence
over 'retention'.
To ensure long-term accessibility (preservation) of electronic court data, the Federal
courts shall review their data storage technologies periodically, every three to five years,
to ensure that stored data can be retrieved.
The Federal Courts anticipate that storage and retrieval technology will continue to
evolve and that new formats and standards will be created. Consequently, the Federal
Courts electronic records and the technology on which they are kept will be regularly
reviewed, from time to time, and the records will be migrated from existing technology
platforms to new technology platforms.

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6.1.13. Electronic Signatures on Court Records

As per the rules of the Federal Courts, an electronic signature on court records shall be
in the form of:
• A digitized image of the person’s signature;
• An “/s/” followed by the person’s name; or
• Any other electronically created method of indicating with clarity the name of the
person whose signature is being affixed to the document.

The following guidelines apply to electronic signatures executed or adopted by a judicial

officer of a Federal court:
• When a person is presented with the opportunity to sign a document electronically, it
must be clear to the person that he or she is being asked to sign the document
electronically. This demonstrates that the person in fact intended to sign the
document;
• When a document is to be signed electronically, it must be presented only to an
authorized person or to someone authorized to execute the signature on the person’s
behalf;
• An electronic signature is attributed to a person if it was the act of that person (or the
act of someone authorized to execute or adopt the signature on that person’s behalf),
which may be shown in any manner, including by showing the efficacy of any
security procedure applied when the signature was executed or adopted;
• The identity of the person who executed or adopted the electronic signature must be
capable of verification. If a document is signed electronically, the court should retain
any data relevant to verifying the signature, such as the identity of the person who
executed or adopted the signature and the date and time that the signature was
executed or adopted.

The following is a list of various court-created documents that can be signed

electronically by a judge or clerk:
• summonses,

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• orders,
• decisions,
• judgments,
• hearing minutes,
• notices,
• bench warrants,
• search warrants,
• arrest warrants,
• and the like.

The following is a list of various documents that can be signed electronically by

parties and their advocates:
• statement of claim,
• statement of defense,
• memorandum of appeal,
• memorandum of response,
• application,
• list of annexes,
• counter claim,
• objection,
• cross-objection,
• affidavit,
• and the like.

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6.2. Functional Requirements:

In addition to the desired features of court records management described under section 4.1
above, the following specific eRMS functional and non-functional requirements are required
to be implemented in Federal Courts’ eRMS to be developed and implemented.

(“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

1 General
The Federal Courts must have electronic records
management system for systematic, organized and
efficient management of records that provide
1.1
comprehensive and up-to-date information for the courts
to guarantee efficiency and effectiveness in the
administration of courts and judicial processes.
The Federal Courts must have transparent and modern
electronic records management system that enables
1.2
upholding of the rights of individuals and the society at
large and also reflect the good image of the judiciary
The Federal Courts must have modern electronic records
management system that can be used to manage any
record falling under the definition of court record and/or
1.3 administrative record, both in electronic and physical
record forms, as per the Federal Courts' Directive to
Provide Rules for Acceptance and Use of Electronic
Records in the Federal Courts.
The Federal Courts must have records management
1.4 system that can admit records received through the
Federal Courts eFiling and Litigation System (eFLS).

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The Federal Courts must have records management

system that can admit and manage: (1) electronic version
of all written documents submitted by all the parties on
a case, (2) electronic version of all written documents
1.5 (notes, appointments, orders, decision, etc.) added by the
Judge in the case file, (3) electronic version of all audio
records including hearing records on the case (if any),
and (4) electronic version of all video records on the case
(if any).
The Federal Courts must have records management
system that can admit and manage electronic version of
all written documents, like letters, memos, notes,
1.6 reports, receipts, invoices, vouchers, statements, etc. for
all non-court services (Administration and Finance,
Planning, Audit, Inspection, Public Relations, ICT,
Research, etc.) of the Federal Courts.
The Federal Courts must have records management
system that can admit and manage paper and digital
documents submitted by all parties on a case and added
1.7
by judges, court and court related audio and video
records, throughout the records management lifecycle
starting from creation/capture up to disposal.
The Federal Courts must have records management
system that enables acceptance and management of
1.8
paper documents that will later be converted into
electronic documents through scanning.

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The Federal Courts must have records management

system that can accept and manage records filed to the
1.9
Federal Courts through electronic filing (eFiling)
methods and by email.
The Federal Courts must have records management
system that can manage the retention schedule of court
1.10
and non-court records of the Federal Courts that are
stored either in electronic or non-electronic formats.
2 Records Capture
The records management system must be able to capture
2.1 written, photo, audio, and video records into the Federal
Courts records repository.
The records management system must be able to index,
i.e., capture relevant metadata associated with each
record, both through automatic and manual processes.
The system must be able to do automatic capture of
selected metadata items: (1) from the document
2.2
properties, (2) from the records classification scheme,
(3) from established records retention rules, (4) from the
records management system itself (e.g. unique record
number), (5) date and time of capture from the operating
system of the computer, etc.

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The records management system must be able to

seamlessly integrate with iCMIS, Administrative and
Finance Information Systems, common desktop
applications (like Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point,
2.3 etc.), Email client software (e.g., outlook for emails and
attachments that need to be retained), PDF reader,
scanned images viewer, etc. and provide easy to use
processes for capturing documents directly into the
records management system.
The records management system must capture and keep
2.4
electronic records in text searchable format.
3 Records Classification
The records management system must support
classification scheme for the purpose of: (1) providing
linkages between individual records which accumulate
to provide a continuous record of activity, (2) ensuring
records are named in a consistent manner over time, (3)
assisting in the retrieval of all records related to a
particular function or activity, (4) determining security
3.1
protection and access appropriate for sets of records, (5)
allocating user permissions for access to, or action on,
particular groups of records, (6) distributing
responsibility for management of particular sets of
records, (7) distributing records for action, (8)
determining appropriate retention periods and
disposition actions for records.

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The records management system must support creation

and maintenance of business classification scheme for
the Federal Courts in manner that can be used for
3.2
organizing, accessing, retrieving, storing, and managing
court, administrative, and other records based on the
functions and levels in the Federal Courts.
The records management system must support creating
3.3 business classification scheme consisting of a hierarchy
of classes, files, volumes, and/or sub-files.
The records management system must support
3.4 creating/adding files in an existing business
classification scheme.
The records management system must support
browsing, searching, and retrieving records based on the
3.5
implemented business classification scheme of the
Federal Courts.
The records management system must support declaring
and saving into an existing file in the business
3.6
classification scheme by browsing the business
classification scheme.
The records management system must support
3.7
modifying the business classification scheme.
4 Non-Electronic Records

The records management system must support

4.1
registration and management of physical files under the

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

same business classification scheme used for electronic

records by the Federal Courts.

The records management system must support

4.2 management of "hybrid files" having both electronic and
physical records.
The records management system must enable keeping
track of non-electronic files or records, from the point of
4.3
they are created to the point when they are destroyed or
disposed of.
The records management system must enable keeping
track of where the physical file or record is and who has
4.4
it, with functionality for audit trail for tracing the
whereabouts of a file or record.
5 Access Control
The records management system must support access
control for the purpose of: (1) ensuring "systematic
control" and "credible evidence", (2) ensuring
authoritative records, (3) protection of commercially
5.1
sensitive information, (4) protection of copyright and
intellectual property rights, (5) protection of personal
information, (6) protection of market information that
are officially declared as confidential.
The records management system must keep the
authenticity, integrity, reliability, and usability of
5.2
records through a well-established access control
mechanisms.

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The records management system must support access

control for enabling: (1) access to features of records,
like metadata (2) access to specific classes, files,
5.3 volumes (sub-files), and records, based on pre-defined
access control groups (i.e., list of named users) and one
or more individual username, and (3) access to records
according to established security classification.
The records management system must enable restricting
and/or granting access to records based on the records
5.4
access control policy of the federal courts, that define
records "access by whom?" and "access to what?"
The records management system must enable alternative
mechanisms for controlling access to records by
5.5 assigning access: (a) to named individuals, (b) to list of
individuals, (c) to business function (role), (d) based on
individual user's clearance to access classified records.
The records management system must have metadata
5.6 item for security classification of records (e.g.,
unclassified, classified, secret, top-secret, etc.)
The records management system must enable assigning
persons who can have access to classified records and
5.7 who can't, based on the need to know, and other
parameters to be determined by the policies of the
Federal Courts.

The records management system must support functions

5.8
for digital rights management such as encryption, digital

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

signatures, public key infrastructure (PKI), electronic

watermarks, and copyright management.

6 Storage, Search, and Retrieval

The records management system must support functions
to store records, search for one or a group of them, obtain
("retrieve"), and present them appropriately. The
6.1
presentation can be in the form of displaying a record of
text and graphics on the screen of computer or printing
it out, as well as playing audio and video files.
The records management system must support redaction
(removing or hiding of sensitive, confidential, and
6.2
private information) without affecting the underlying
record.
The records management system must support tracking
6.3
all actions on electronic records and physical records.
The records management system must support searching
6.4 by metadata, keywords, content and full text as well as
browsing functionalities.
7 Retention and Disposal
The records management systems must support keeping
and maintaining records based on approved retention
7.1 schedule that identify the minimum amount of time that
records must be kept to satisfy the administrative, legal,
fiscal, and historical needs of the Federal Courts.

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The records management system must support the

retention of records for varying lengths of time
depending on legal requirements, continuing relevance,
7.2 public interest, or future need attached to a specific
record or groups of records and/or the policies of the
federal courts and also execute what happens to the
record(s) when the retention period ends.
The records management system must support the
preparation of retention schedules by grouping records
7.3 having shared characteristics and applying the same
retention schedule to a group of records with shared
characteristics.
The records management system must support the
application retention periods to records upon their
creation or capture and the automatic application of
7.4
retention schedule based on established records
classification scheme and records management policies
and procedures.
The records management systems must support
reviewing the records, taking the appropriate disposal
7.5
action, and record the disposition action metadata for
those records whose retention period is completed.
The records management system must support
7.6 disposition options for either electronic or physical
records or both.

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

The records management system must support

7.7 disposition options either through destruction or transfer
to the national achieves.
The records management system must support the
application of legal holds that change specific records
7.8 retention status through extending the remaining period
to keep the record in the courts by applying a hold that
has precedence over the record retention status.
8 Metadata
The records management system must support defining
metadata elements that provide: (1) basic metadata
about a record (like Record identifier code e.g. case
number, Date Created, Creator, Title, Type, Status, etc.),
(2) metadata to support discovery of the record and
8.1 establish its purpose and context (like Description,
Source or Publisher, Addressee or Audience, Location,
Language, Document Format, etc.), (3) metadata to
support management of the item as a record (like Access
Rights, Security Classification, Retention period,
Preservation method, Disposal method, Mandate, etc.)
The records management system must support capturing
metadata from the following sources: (1) metadata
entered by the user (e.g., Document Title, Addressee,
8.2
etc.), (2) metadata derived based on login ID (e.g.,
Creator name, Job Title, Contact details, etc.), (3)
metadata derived from system data (e.g., Date Created,

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 (“ C” or
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Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

Date Modified, Time Created, Time Modified,

Document format, etc.), (4) metadata data derived from
the classes and filed in the classification scheme under
which the record is saved.
The records management system must support
automated metadata capture as much as possible and
8.3
require users and administrators to enter metadata for a
few items only.
The records management system must keep metadata of
8.4
disposed records.
The records management system must have metadata for
entering the security classification level of a record and
8.5 also for keeping track of records on initial and any
subsequent changes to the classification done on the
record.
9 Discovery and Disclosure
The records management system must support
discovery, i.e., evidence gathering through searches in
9.1 order to identify and reveal relevant evidences and make
them available to the concerned court and parties in legal
dispute.
The records management system must support receiving
formal request from authorities and/or statutory
9.2
obligation, recording decision on disclosure, and
disclosure of records, also taking care of redaction

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 (“ C” or
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Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

requirements for sensitive, confidential, classified, and

private information.
10 Migration
The records management system must support the
capability for migration of records from one system to
10.1
another, while maintaining the records authenticity,
integrity, reliability, and usability.
The records management system must support both of
10.2 the two sides of migration, i.e., importing records from
other systems and exporting records to other systems.
The records management system must have the
capability to control who can authorize the migration of
records, what type of records will be migrated, which
10.3 records will be migrated, who can execute the migration
based on the authority given him/her, and who can test
confirm the correctness and completeness of the
migration done
11 Management and Administration
The records management system must support assigning
11.1 different roles, including owner, records manager, user,
and system administrator roles.
The records management system must support provision
11.2 full functionality for each respective role defined in the
software.

6.3. Non-Functional Requirements:

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 (“ C” or
Response
Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

1 Ease-of-Use
The records management system must be easy to use,
i.e., the system must provide (1) familiar user interface
for an average windows application user, (2) use a few
number of clicks for common transactions like declaring
a record, retrieving record, etc., (3) provide data entry
defaults for user definable values, repeats of pervious
1.1
item, and context values for date, file reference, and user
identifier, (4) features to capture metadata from scanned
images, audio, and video files (5) display several records
at the same time, (6) cross-references for navigation
between related records, (7) context-sensitive online
help, and (8) meaningful error message.
The records management system must be easy to use, in
that the time it takes to save records to the system and
1.2
also to retrieve records from the system must be very
short.
2 Performance
The system must provide fast performance while the
2.1 majority users of the records management are logged
into the system and actively using it
The records management system must be easy to use, in
that the save and retrieve times must be made minimal
2.2 through tight integration of the Integrated Court
Management Information System (iCMIS), eRMS, and
desktop applications and features for automated

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 (“ C” or
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Feature Electronic Records Management System (eRMS) Description of
ID Business Requirements Response

metadata capture, intuitive business classification

scheme, and simple user interface.

3 Scalability
The system must be scalable to accommodate more and
3.1
more users.
4 Availability
The system must be available and provide services non-
4.1
stop.

7. Users of the eRMS:

The users of eRMS can be persons who are provided access to the eRMS or systems which
are linked to the eRMS and provided access for exchanging information and records.

7.1. eRMS Administrators

eRMS administrators are information technology (IT) professionals who are trained on
system administration and eRMS application software administration. Key roles of the
eRMS administrator are:
• managing the overall systems and recordkeeping processes within the Federal Courts’
eRMS,
• modifying, updating and managing the Business Classification Scheme (BCS)
structures in eRMS,
• modifying, updating and managing disposal authorities in eRMS,
• creating and managing membership of user and security groups, and

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 • provide court-wide eRMS business support and advice.

7.2. eRMS Help Desk Officers

The eRMS Help Desk Officer shall have the following roles:
• monitors the eRMS server and supports the eRMS Administrator in the management
of users, by finding, locking, and unlocking users,
• responds to queries via phone, chat, and email,
• performs simple troubleshooting and diagnosing problems on eRMS
• provides technical assistance for questions and problems from users,
• follows up with eRMS users to ensure full resolution of issues,
• prepares reports that summarize and analyze common complaints and problems, and
• installs or updates software, under guidance of the eRMS Administrator.

7.3. Records Management Officers

Records Management Officers are in charge of the management of records. The major
roles of Record Management Officers are:
• create folders and folder structures, files, and volumes within the BCS framework
developed by the eRMS Admin, to allow judges and authorized staff of the Federal
courts to add records into eRMS,
• receive and create lists of approved individuals who are to have access to particular
folders, files and records,
• submit requests to eRMS Administrator for creation of user and security groups,
• receive user and security groups from eRMS Administrator and join users to their
respective groups to restrict access to records or folders (as authorized), and
• perform all eRMS activities, except those reserved only to the eRMS Administrator.

7.4. Record Owners

As per Article 3 of the Civil Procedure Code, the interpretation given to the term “Registrar”
includes roles related to the maintenance of the register of suits. The article also indicates

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 that records management clerks are under the Registrar. These are very clearly stipulated in
the Amharic version of the code. On the other hand, Registrars are the ones who receive
pleadings from parties, verify their technical sufficiency, and admit the pleadings as court
record. Registrars are also the ones who receive the orders, decisions, judgments, etc. issued
by judges and releases these records to the parties. Therefore, records flowing from both
sides, i.e., the parties and judges are added to the files by the Registrars. Considering this
we can assume Registrars as record owners, of course on behalf of the Parties and the
Judges.

For non-court records, Record owners are the respective official or officer or representative
of an organizational unit who created and signed on that record.

Roles of Record Owners are:

• creating and adding records into eRMS, and
• requesting the creation of a record contribution file or folder.

7.5. Record Users

Record users are any person who have user account created in the eRMS. The roles of record
users are to:
• retrieve and view records, and
• download records based on the access rights provided to them.

7.6. iCMIS (Integrated Case Management Information System)

The Integrated Case Management Information System (iCMIS) stores the court records in
the eRMS and retrieves such records from the eRMS. For this reason the two systems are
integrated through interface. Therefore, iCMIS is considered as eRMS user.

7.7. AFIS (Administrative and Finance Information System)

The Administration and Finance Information System (AFIS) stores the Administration and
Finance records of the Federal Courts in the eRMS and retrieves such records from the

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 eRMS. For this reason the two systems are integrated through interface. Therefore, AFIS is
considered as eRMS user.

7.8. Email System

As emails and their attachments are one of the basic sources of institutional records, the
enterprise emails system that is going to be established for the Federal Courts must be
integrated with eRMS. As the email system will add records into eRMS and also accesses
the eRMS to obtain records, it must be integrated with eRMS. For this reason, the Federal
Courts Email system (to be established) is considered as eRMS users.

7.9. Desktop Applications

Desktop applications such as Microsoft Office suite application and applications such as
Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader or any other PDF reader applications are mainly used in
the Federal Courts for creating and retrieving records. There is no need to have specific
integration between this desktop applications and eRMS. But eRMS must support creating
and viewing its records through these desktop applications. For this reason, desktop
applications are considered as users of eRMS.

8. Solution Requirements:

The solution requirements of eRMS must describe the expected capabilities and qualities that
the eRMS software must fulfill to meet business requirements defined in this BRD. Such
solution requirements are defined in the document entitled “The Ethiopian Federal Courts’
Software Requirements Specification (SRS) for the Development of Electronic Records
Management System (eRMS)” which provides specification of the software requirement in the
appropriate level of detail so as to allow for the development and implementation of the eRMS
solution. Please refer to this document.
9. Transition Requirements:

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The developer is required to perform the following, among others, for smooth transition to
eRMS:
1) the scanned files of the paper files in the Federal Courts must be captured into the eRMS,
2) existing digital audio files of court proceedings in the Federal Courts must be captured into
the eRMS,
3) existing digital video files of court proceedings in the Federal Courts must be captured into
the eRMS,
4) eRMS interface with iCMIS must be implemented and rolled-out,
5) eRMS user manual as well as administration and support manual must be completed and
handed over to the federal courts,
6) eRMS administrator training must be given to all application, database, and system
administrators,
7) eRMS technical support training must be given to all eRMS application software, database,
and system administrators and help desk staff,
8) in-depth eRMS users’ training and Training of Trainers (ToT) must be given to select IT
technical staff drawn from the Federal Courts. Note: eRMS user training is expected to be
given by the trained trainers, to all expected eRMS users in the Federal Courts, including
judges, registrars, assistant judges, bench clerks, data encoders.
9)

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