November 12, 2009 | The Citizen
To step into the post, some might be overwhelmed at the sheer size of the work.
Not Jackson. Instead, he has turned his office into a national model for district clerk offices while also saving thousands of dollars for local taxpayers by developing technology never before available here.
He and his 550 employees keep up with the civil and criminal court records, naturalization records, historical archives, divorce papers, marriage licenses, child support rulings, summon jurors for court cases and even alert lawyers of upcoming cases.
220,000 Annually
Handling all the records takes experience. "You can���t go to school to learn to be a court clerk; it takes two years of on-the-job training," he told Space Center Rotary last week.
Yet they are responsible for all courts which average about 220,000 filings yearly. And, they have to be perfect in their work. "If a clerk makes an error, a man may stay in jail 40 days instead of 4, so they can't make mistakes."
His determination to bring the office into the 21st century began almost as soon as he took office Nov. 18, 2008. In a few short months, the district clerk has raised the salaries of his employees despite a $1.5 million cut in his budget, streamlined the efficiency of all his departments, and brought the office���s services into the digital era.
Top Honor
Jackson, who this year at the age of 30 was named one of Five Outstanding Young Houstonians, grew up with technology and understands the tremendous value it can bring to the county ��� the savings it can mean to taxpayers.
To that end, he has "focused on utilizing technology for better and faster services to members of the bar and the general public while delivering a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly office."
By going to electronic filing of documents, he has saved $710,000 this year in the cost of paper that would have been used filing civil cases, he said.
More Savings
Other savings he's proud of:
$12,000 annually spent on bottled water for his office. "We now drink out of the tap."
$400,000 a year by moving a call center in San Antonio to Houston.
On Sept. 18, his office processed 679 e-filed cases, breaking its previous record of 509 back on Aug. 21.
He also has been working to make Houston residents want to be on juries ��� hosting Juror Appreciation Week in mid-September with special guest speakers personally thanking prospective jurors for their participation.
Among the speakers were former astronaut Gene Cernan, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, County Commissioners Sylvia Garcia and El Franco Lee, District Attorney Pat Lykos, criminal defense attorney Rusty Hardin and State Sen. John Whitmire.
"Can you image their faces when the last man to step on the moon, Gene Cernan, stepped up to thank them for coming to serve?"
All Online
Meanwhile, Jackson is continuing a project started under former District Clerk Charles Bacarisse of putting all court files online.
Twenty-one of the 25 civil district courts have gone totally electronic, he said, and document scanning for the other four will be done by next spring.
"My focus as Harris County district clerk is to provide information to the public as efficiently as possible. Our office is taking the lead in establishing innovative technology that will make it easier for the public to access the information needed and to guarantee trips to our office will be most productive."
- Mary Alys Cherry
District Clerk Turning Heads at the Courthouse
Harris County District Clerk Loren Jackson has the job of keeping up with the records in the third largest county in the United States.To step into the post, some might be overwhelmed at the sheer size of the work.
Not Jackson. Instead, he has turned his office into a national model for district clerk offices while also saving thousands of dollars for local taxpayers by developing technology never before available here.
He and his 550 employees keep up with the civil and criminal court records, naturalization records, historical archives, divorce papers, marriage licenses, child support rulings, summon jurors for court cases and even alert lawyers of upcoming cases.
220,000 Annually
Handling all the records takes experience. "You can���t go to school to learn to be a court clerk; it takes two years of on-the-job training," he told Space Center Rotary last week.
Yet they are responsible for all courts which average about 220,000 filings yearly. And, they have to be perfect in their work. "If a clerk makes an error, a man may stay in jail 40 days instead of 4, so they can't make mistakes."
His determination to bring the office into the 21st century began almost as soon as he took office Nov. 18, 2008. In a few short months, the district clerk has raised the salaries of his employees despite a $1.5 million cut in his budget, streamlined the efficiency of all his departments, and brought the office���s services into the digital era.
Top Honor
Jackson, who this year at the age of 30 was named one of Five Outstanding Young Houstonians, grew up with technology and understands the tremendous value it can bring to the county ��� the savings it can mean to taxpayers.
To that end, he has "focused on utilizing technology for better and faster services to members of the bar and the general public while delivering a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly office."
By going to electronic filing of documents, he has saved $710,000 this year in the cost of paper that would have been used filing civil cases, he said.
More Savings
Other savings he's proud of:
$12,000 annually spent on bottled water for his office. "We now drink out of the tap."
$400,000 a year by moving a call center in San Antonio to Houston.
On Sept. 18, his office processed 679 e-filed cases, breaking its previous record of 509 back on Aug. 21.
He also has been working to make Houston residents want to be on juries ��� hosting Juror Appreciation Week in mid-September with special guest speakers personally thanking prospective jurors for their participation.
Among the speakers were former astronaut Gene Cernan, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, County Commissioners Sylvia Garcia and El Franco Lee, District Attorney Pat Lykos, criminal defense attorney Rusty Hardin and State Sen. John Whitmire.
"Can you image their faces when the last man to step on the moon, Gene Cernan, stepped up to thank them for coming to serve?"
All Online
Meanwhile, Jackson is continuing a project started under former District Clerk Charles Bacarisse of putting all court files online.
Twenty-one of the 25 civil district courts have gone totally electronic, he said, and document scanning for the other four will be done by next spring.
"My focus as Harris County district clerk is to provide information to the public as efficiently as possible. Our office is taking the lead in establishing innovative technology that will make it easier for the public to access the information needed and to guarantee trips to our office will be most productive."
- Mary Alys Cherry
Pol. Adv. Paid for by the Loren Jackson Campaign, Brad Beers, Treasurer. Copyright © 2009 Loren Jackson. All rights reserved.
- February 19, 2010
Loren Jackson Earns Top Marks from Legal Community
District Clerk Kicks-Off Another Winning Season in HBA 2010 Judicial Poll
You can now follow Loren Jackson and his campaign for re-election using Social Media!
