Home // DATA ANALYTICS 2012, The First International Conference on Data Analytics // View article
Authors:
Joseph Zernik
Keywords: e-Courts; e-Government; United States; Banking Regulation; PACER; CM/ECF
Abstract:
The current report is based on data mining of the information systems of the US courts – PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) and CM/ECF (Case Management/Electronic Court Filing) in general, and review of the electronic records in a landmark litigation under the current financial crisis: Securities and Exchange Commission v Bank of America Corporation (2009-10). The case originated in the unlawful taking of $5.8 billion by banking executives, and concluded with the executives never returning the funds to the stockholders and with no individual being held accountable. The case was covered numerous times by major US and world media. Data mining of records of the US courts from coast to coast reveals built-in deficiencies in validity and integrity of the PACER and CM/ECF. The case study documents missing and invalid litigation records, leading to the conclusion that the case as a whole amounts to simulated litigation. A number of corrective measures are outlined, including publicly and legally accountable functional logic verification of PACER and CM/ECF, and correction of the defective signature and authentication procedures now implemented in the systems. This study highlights the significance of application of data mining to the target area of court records in particular, and records of the justice system in general. It is also a call for action by computing experts and data mining experts in for the safeguard of Human Rights and integrity of governments in the Digital Era.
Pages: 83 to 93
Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2012
Publication date: September 23, 2012
Published in: conference
ISSN: 2308-4464
ISBN: 978-1-61208-242-4
Location: Barcelona, Spain
Dates: from September 23, 2012 to September 28, 2012