(a) Online Manual. The clerk shall prepare and publish policies and procedures for electronic filing in an Online Manual, which the clerk may amend from time to time. These policies and procedures, which are exempt from the public notice and comment requirements for adoption of local rules, shall have the force of local rules. The Online Manual is available on the court’s web page.

(b) Signatures on Documents filed Electronically. Any paper physically signed and filed electronically, or submitted in paper for filing and thereafter converted to an electronic document by the clerk, has the same force and effect as an original. Verified or certified papers filed electronically shall be treated for all purposes (both civil and criminal, including penalties for perjury) as if they had been physically signed and/or subscribed.

(c) Security of Electronic Filing Account. Each attorney, law firm, trustee, or other person that obtains a password for electronic filing is responsible for the account security and use. No attorney, law firm, trustee, or other person may knowingly permit or cause to permit an electronic filer’s password to be used by anyone other than an authorized member, employee, or agent of the electronic filer’s firm.