The Open Courts Act of 2026 mandates the creation of a centralized, modern, and publicly accessible electronic federal court records system, funded by new fee structures, while ensuring digital accessibility and cybersecurity.
John Kennedy
Senator
LA
The Open Courts Act of 2026 mandates the creation of a modern, centralized electronic system for federal court records, accessible to the public via a separate interface. This system must feature modern development principles, robust search capabilities, and free public access, while establishing new funding mechanisms to cover its operation. The bill also sets standards for digital accessibility, cybersecurity, and long-term online availability of court documents.
Open Courts Act of 2026 Mandates Free Public Access to Federal Records and Modernized Search Tools within Six Years.
The Open Courts Act of 2026 aims to tear down the paywall surrounding federal court records by creating a centralized, free-to-use electronic system. Under Section 2, the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts must build a modern platform that replaces the aging PACER system, providing the public with advanced search tools, bulk data access, and mobile-friendly designs. For the average person, this means no more paying per page just to read a court order or follow a high-profile case. The bill requires this system to be live within five years, though a one-year extension is possible if the tech build-out hits a snag.
Paying for the Upgrade
To keep the lights on without charging the public for clicks, the bill shifts the bill to high-volume users and federal agencies. According to Section 3, entities that rack up over $25,000 in fees in a single quarter—think massive data miners or large law firms—will face additional charges during the transition. Once the system is fully operational, federal agencies will pay annual fees based on their historical usage. If that isn't enough to cover the costs, the Judicial Conference can implement graduated filing fees for new cases. However, there is a built-in safeguard: anyone making less than $250,000 a year is exempt from these extra filing costs, ensuring that regular folks aren't priced out of the courtroom just to fund the website.
Tech Specs and Security Trade-offs
This isn't just a basic website update; Section 2 mandates "user-centered design" and modern software practices, meaning the system should actually work like the apps we use daily. It will include machine-readable citations and automatic notifications for new filings. On the security front, Section 6 requires the system to meet executive-branch cybersecurity standards. However, there’s a notable exception: the Director can waive certain security requirements if they are deemed "infeasible" or if they give the executive branch too much access to judicial data. While this protects the independence of the courts, it places a heavy burden on the Director to ensure alternative security measures are actually up to par.
Long-Term Memory and Oversight
The bill ensures that history doesn't disappear into a digital black hole. Section 7 extends the life of electronic records, requiring closed case files to stay online for at least 15 years after a case ends, while written opinions must remain available indefinitely. To make sure this doesn't become a multi-billion dollar government boondoggle, Section 5 puts the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on the case. The GAO will perform quarterly check-ins and biennial audits to ensure the software vendors are actually delivering what they promised and that the system is meeting the needs of real-world users, from professional attorneys to people representing themselves.