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IN THE

SUPREME COURT OF INDIANA

ORDER AMENDING RULES OF TRIAL PROCEDURE

Under the authority vested in this Court to provide by rule for the procedure employed in all courts of this state, Rules 5, 53.2, 59, 60 and 77 of the Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure are amended to read as follows (deletions shown by striking and 
new text shown by underlining                                                                                             ):


                                                                                                                            
RULE 5.  SERVICE AND FILING OF PLEADING AND OTHER PAPERS
                                                          

                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                   (A                                                                                                                             )     Service: When Required.  Unless otherwise provided by these rules or an
order of the court, each party and special judge, if any, shall be served with:
        (1) every order required by its terms to be served;
        
        (2) every pleading subsequent to the original complaint;
        
        (3) every written motion except one which may be heard ex parte;
        
        (4) every brief submitted to the trial court;
        
        (5) every paper relating to discovery required to be served upon a party;          and    
        
        (6) every written notice, appearance, demand, offer of judgment,               designation of record on appeal, or similar paper.

No service need be made on parties in default for failure to appear, except that pleadings asserting new or additional claims for relief against them shall be served upon them in the manner provided by service of summons in Rule 4.
    
     . . .

    
RULE 53.2. TIME FOR HOLDING ISSUE UNDER ADVISEMENT;
DELAY OF ENTERING A JUDGMENT

        (A) Time limitation for holding matter under advisement. Whenever a cause (including for this purpose a petition for post conviction relief) has been tried to the court and taken under advisement by the judge, and the judge fails to determine any issue of law or fact within ninety (90) days, the submission of all the pending issues and the cause may be withdrawn from the trial judge and transferred to the Supreme Court for the appointment of a special judge.

        . . .

RULE 59. MOTION TO CORRECT ERROR

    . . .

    (C) Time for filing: Service on judge. The motion to correct error, if any, shall be filed not later than thirty (30) days after the entry of a final judgment or an appealable final order. A copy of the motion to correct error shall be served, when filed, upon the judge before whom the case is pending pursuant to Trial Rule 5. The time at which the court is deemed to have ruled on the motion is set forth in T.R. 53.3.

    . . .

RULE 60. RELIEF FROM JUDGMENT OR ORDER

    . . .

     (B) Mistake--- Excusable neglect--- Newly discovered evidence--- Fraud, etc. On motion and upon such terms as are just the court may relieve a party or his legal representative from an entry of default, final order, or final judgment, including a judgment by default, for the following reasons:

        (1) mistake, surprise, or excusable neglect;

        (2) any ground for a motion to correct error, including without     limitation newly discovered evidence, which by due diligence could not     have been discovered in time to move for a motion to correct errors under     Rule 59;

        (3) fraud (whether heretofore denominated intrinsic or extrinsic),     misrepresentation, or other misconduct of an adverse party;

        (4) entry of default or judgment by default was entered against such     party who was served only by publication and who was without actual     knowledge of the action and judgment, order or proceedings;

        (5) except in the case of a divorce decree, the record fails to show that     such party was represented by a guardian or other representative, and if the     motion asserts and such party proves that

            (a) at the time of the action he was an infant or incompetent         person, and

            (b) he was not in fact represented by a guardian or other         representative, and

            (c) the person against whom the judgment, order or proceeding         is being avoided procured the judgment with notice of such infancy or         incompetency, and, as against a successor of such person, that such         successor acquired his rights therein with notice that the judgment was         procured against an infant or incompetent, and

            (d) no appeal or other remedies allowed under this subdivision         have been taken or made by or on behalf of the infant or incompetent         person, and

            (e) the motion was made within ninety (90) days after the         disability was removed or a guardian was appointed over his estate,         and
        
            (f) the motion alleges a valid defense or claim;

        (6) the judgment is void;

        (7) the judgment has been satisfied, released, or discharged, or a prior     judgment upon which it is based has been reversed or otherwise vacated, or     it is no longer equitable that the judgment should have prospective application;     or

        (8) any reason justifying relief from the operation of the judgment,     other than those reasons set forth in subparagraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4).

    The motion shall be filed within a reasonable time for reasons (5), (6), (7), and (8), and not more than one year after the judgment, order or proceeding was entered or taken for reasons (1), (2), (3), and (4). A movant filing a motion for reasons (1),

(2), (3), (4), and (8) must allege a meritorious claim or defense. A motion under this subdivision (B) does not affect the finality of a judgment or suspend its operation. This rule does not limit the power of a court to entertain an independent action to relieve a party from a judgment, order or proceeding or for fraud upon the court. Writs of coram nobis, coram vobis, audita querela, and bills of review and bills in the nature of a bill of review, are abolished, and the procedure for obtaining any relief from a judgment shall be by motion as prescribed in these rules or by an independent action.
     . . .

RULE 77. COURT RECORDS

     . . .

     (K) Electronic Posting of Court Records. The clerk, with the consent of the majority of the judges in the courts of record, may make court records, including but not limited to the chronological case summary, record of judgments and orders, index, and case file, available to the public through remote electronic access such as the Internet or other electronic method. The records to be posted, the specific information that is to be included, its format, pricing structure, if any, method of dissemination, and any subsequent changes thereto must be approved by the Division of State Court Administration under the direction of the Supreme Court of Indiana. Such availability of court records shall be subject to applicable laws regarding confidentiality.

    These amendments shall be effective January 1, 1999.
    The Clerk of this Court is ORDERED to forward a copy of this order to the Clerk of each Circuit Court in the State of Indiana; Attorney General of Indiana; Legislative Services Agency and its Office of Code Revision; Administrator, Supreme Court of Indiana; Administrator, Indiana Court of Appeals; Administrator, Indiana Tax Court; Public Defender of Indiana; Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission; Indiana Supreme Court Commission for Continuing Legal Education; Indiana Board of Law Examiners; Indiana Judicial Center; Division of State Court Administration; the libraries of all law schools in the state; the Michie Company; and West Publishing Company.
    West Publishing Company is directed to publish this order in the advance sheets of this Court.

    The Clerks of the Circuit Courts are ORDERED to bring this order to the attention of all judges within their respective counties and to post this order for examination by the Bar and general public.
    DONE at Indianapolis, Indiana, this _____ day of December, 1998.

                            FOR THE COURT

                            _____________________________
                            Acting Chief Justice of Indiana

    

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