[legalxml-sc] Draft OASIS Press Release: LegalXML TCs

LegalXML Steering Committee, I've prepared the following draft press release to announce the new LegalXML technical committees. Please review and send me your comments. Thanks, Carol

--
Confidential Draft OASIS Press Release

--
New Standards for Legal Information Exchange Underway at OASIS LegalXML  Consortium Forms Technical Committees to Address Standards for Integrated Justice, eNotarization, eContracts, Electronic Court Filing, Legislative Documents, and Transcripts.  Boston, MA, USA; x September 2002

--
Legal and technical communities unite as OASIS, the XML interoperability consortium, forms six new LegalXML committees to create standards for the electronic exchange of legal data. Backed by government agencies, lawyers, and vendors, the new working groups include:
- OASIS LegalXML Integrated Justice Technical Committee, which will design XML specifications for exchanging data among justice system branches and agencies;
- OASIS LegalXML eNotarization Technical Committee, which will develop an agreed set of technical requirements to govern self-proving electronic legal information;
- OASIS LegalXML eContracts Technical Committee, which will advance XML standards to enable the efficient creation, maintenance, management, exchange and publication of contract documents and terms;
- OASIS LegalXML Electronic Court Filing Technical Committee, which will develop specifications for the use of XML to create legal documents and to transmit legal documents between attorneys, litigants, courts, and other users of legal documents; and
- OASIS LegalXML Transcripts Technical Committee, which will design an XML-compliant syntax for representing legal transcript documents.  Don Bergeron of LexisNexis, chair of the OASIS LegalXML Steering Committee, stated, "As part of OASIS, LegalXML has evolved from an open discussion forum to an active, standards-setting group. These new technical committees are developing the standardized structures, vocabularies and data exchange tools that are necessary for the efficient exchange of legal information."  Participation in the LegalXML remains open to all organizations and individuals. OASIS hosts open mail lists for comment on the work of each technical committee, and completed specifications will be freely available to the public without licensing or other fees. Information on joining OASIS can be found on  http://www.oasis-open.org/join .
About LegalXML  LegalXML brings legal and technical experts together to create standards for the electronic exchange of legal data. LegalXML operates as a member section within OASIS, the not-for-profit, global consortium that drives the development, convergence and adoption of e-business standards. Members themselves set the LegalXML agenda, using the open OASIS technical process expressly designed to promote industry consensus and unite disparate efforts. LegalXML produces standards for electronic court filing, court documents, legal citations, transcripts, criminal justice intelligence systems, and others.  http://www.legalxml.org/
For more information: Carol Geyer Director of Communications OASIS www.oasis-open.org  +1.978.667.5115 x209