The Hawaii State Judiciary announced Tuesday that the Third Circuit Court on Hawaii Island will launch an Online Dispute Resolution Pilot Project.
Beginning Sept. 1, parties to certain small claims cases will be required to use TurboCourt, an online application, to file, negotiate and attempt to resolve their small claims cases online before court-ordered mediation.
Parties who may not have the technological resources to participate online must request an exemption from a judge.
More detailed information about the project can be found on the Judiciary website under the Self-Help tab (Small Claims) or call the Third Circuit District Court in Hilo at 961-7515, South Kohala at 443-2030 or Kona at 322-8703.
Last year, the First Circuit on Oahu was the first to launch the pilot program, followed by the Second Circuit on Maui.
As a result, 645 individuals were able to electronically file their small claim cases, with many of those parties utilizing the free online negotiation and mediation tools to dispute their small claims cases online instead of immediately heading to court.