A new filing and search system for the Fresno County Superior Court is frustrating lawyers. In response, the court is asking for patience.
“There was a lot of anxiety for lawyers and people working in lawyers’ offices, particularly in criminal defense,” attorney Scott Baly told GV Wire. A former public defender, Baly now operates a law firm with his wife, Margarita Martinez-Baly.
The court switched systems last week, and it is not yet fully operational. Court cases are public information. Members of the public are allowed to access information about cases on any computer, such as the docket and case dates — and, for civil cases, download documents. Access is more limited on remote computers for criminal and family cases. Only dockets are available, but full information is accessible on computers in the courthouse.
Starting last week, the court transitioned from a system called Odyssey to eCourt. The system was taken offline for several days, with a scheduled return date of April 1.
“That turned out to be an April Fool’s joke because it didn’t go online,” attorney Scott Baly said.
Baly said that for a time his office was “in the dark” about how to advise clients on basic information, such as when to appear.
Online access has been slow to return, causing confusion around the courthouse, Baly said. Access to search by name or case number did not return until last Friday, two days behind schedule. The court still has not fully updated new filings.
“We understand that the transition to a new case management impacts all our court users,” court CEO Dawn Annino told GV Wire through a spokesperson. “The decision was not made lightly.”
Annino said several factors were considered in making the change, such as security, configurability, cost, system performance, customer service, underlying technology, data storage efficiency, and direct interface capability. Half the trial courts in California use eCourt, she said.
“The court is not surprised to hear that our customers do not care for the new system, yet. Change is hard, but the new system is more streamlined and easier to use than our past system. Once our customers get familiar with eCourt we believe they will find it more user-friendly,” Annino said.
The switch involved 5 million cases and 18 million documents, the court said.
Attorneys Not Happy
“We haven’t been able to do s- -t with the Fresno County court system.” — Attorney Shanna Hesketh
The transition to the new system is not going smoothly inside the courthouse either. Baly said there was a long line outside the clerk’s office at the main court for defendants to learn basic information about their case.
“People were just wanting to know, where do I go? Where is my case? Am I going to get a bench warrant if I don’t appear where I’m supposed to appear? My understanding is the court had trouble keeping up with the speed,” Baly said.
Several other attorneys expressed displeasure. One, who spoke on background, said the new system was hard to search and the attorney was “too frustrated to figure it out.”
Fresno attorney Shanna Hesketh, owner of Trauma Law California, which specializes in personal injury and criminal defense, said the new system is “not as user-friendly on the attorney side.”
She was one of several attorneys confused on the switchover date of April 1, not sure which courtroom to appear in.
“The clerks did seem very stressed on that April 1 date while all of these changes were being made,” Hesketh said.
She vented her frustration in a post on her firm’s Facebook page.
“We haven’t been able to do s- -t with the Fresno County court system,” Hesketh said in a video.
The court told GV Wire that staff were helping implement the new system for judges on Monday, when most returned after a short week. The court was closed March 31 for Fresno County Farmworker and Agriculture Appreciation Day (formerly Cesar Chavez Day).
Will More Functions Return?
The court suspended most e-filing capabilities for attorneys during March in anticipation of the switch. Attorneys had to file paperwork in-person for non-criminal cases for the month and from March 26 to March 31 for criminal cases. One attorney lamented the lack of ability to file after hours. The court shut down any access to computers from March 27 to April 1.
Not everything is available as it was with the Odyssey software. Users could search for filings by entering in a date range. That no longer works. Annino said, because “date range searches are not a default search criteria, therefore such a search is not available.”
Hesketh also said using a partial-name search no longer works. In Odyssey, users who logged in to the system could use the asterisk to assist when a full case name was not entered.
Annino said the Fresno County Superior Court discussed the change with “justice partners, stakeholders, and members of the Bar for the past year.” The court issued a notice of the change in December.
‘Bound to Be Challenges’ Because of the Volume
“For the most part the switch has gone well. Whenever you are converting the volume of data we needed to convert, there are bound to be challenges. One such challenge we encountered was the issue that prevented the portal from going live on April 1, 2026. The court had initially planned on opening the portal to the public on that date. A conversion issue was detected, causing the court to delay opening the portal to the public. This issue was corrected, and the portal is now open to the public,” Annino said.
Judicial officers are also adapting, Annino said.
“For some the change has been very smooth; for others the change has been more challenging,” she said. “We fully expected to encounter some conversion issues, which we have, but none have been showstoppers. The conversion has been a multi-year endeavor requiring countless hours of staff time. We are still in the growing pain stages but are optimistic that everyone will experience the efficiencies and benefits of eCourt before long. We thank you for your patience and understanding as we work through this transition.”
Tyler Technologies of Plano, Texas, publishes Odyssey. Its website lists 28 California counties accepting Odyssey e-filings. Los Angeles-based Journal Technologies publishes eCourt. Information on the contract with each company was not immediately available.