Vt. Memo to the Bar, Oct. 29, 2025

SUPREME COURT OF VERMONT

OFFICE OF THE COURT ADMINISTRATOR

THERESE CORSONES, ESQ. Mailing Address

State Court Administrator Office of the Court Administrator

Therese.Corsones@vtcourts.gov 109 State Street

Montpelier, VT 05609-0701

Telephone (802) 828-3278

FAX: 802 828-3457

www.vermontjudiciary.org

TO: Members of the Vermont Bar

FROM: Teri Corsones, Esq., State Court Administrator

RE: Promulgated and Proposed Rules, eFile and Serve and Public Portal Information,

Filing of Exhibits & Other Miscellaneous Info

DATE: October 29, 2025

For your information, please find:

• Promulgation Order Amending Rule 106 of the Vermont Rules of Evidence

• Promulgation Order Making Emergency Permanent and Further Amending Rule 4.2(e) of

the Vermont Rules for Family Proceedings

• Promulgation Order Amending Rule 9(c) of the Vermont Rules for Family Proceedings

• Proposed Order Amending Rule 615 of the Vermont Rules of Evidence

• eFile & Serve and Public Portal Information

• Filing of Exhibits for Evidentiary Hearing

• Miscellaneous

I. PROMULGATED RULE AMENDMENTS

a. Promulgation Order Amending Rule 106 of the Vermont Rules of Evidence

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/PROMULGATED--VRE106--STAMPED

This Order was promulgated on October 29, 2025, effective January 1, 2026.

The amendment follows a similar amendment to the Federal Rules of Evidence, and clarifies

that, in situations where fairness requires completion, completing statements are admissible over

a hearsay objection. The rule of completeness is grounded in fairness and cannot fulfill its

function if the party that creates a misimpression about the meaning of a proffered statement

can then object on hearsay grounds and exclude a statement that would correct the

misimpression.

b. Promulgation Order Making Emergency Permanent and Further Amending Rule 4.2(e) of

the Vermont Rules for Family Proceedings

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/PROMULGATED--

VRFP42eMakingEmergencyPermanentandFurtherAmending--STAMPED

This Order was promulgated on October 29, 2025, effective January 1, 2026.

Rule 4.2(e) was amended in November 2024 on an emergency basis to streamline the change

of venue for post-judgment motions in divorce matters. Those amendments are now permanent.

Under the emergency rule, if neither party resides in the county where the most-recent order

was amended and the filer affirms that that the filer is still a resident of Vermont, venue shifts to

the filer’s county of residence. The rule is further amended to indicate that this venue change is

automatic unless the filing party requests otherwise.

c. Promulgation Order Amending Rule 9(c) of the Vermont Rules for Family Proceedings

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/PROMULGATED--VRFP9c--STAMPED

This Order was promulgated on October 29, 2025, effective January 1, 2026.

Rule 9(c) regarding emergency relief in abuse-prevention proceedings is amended as follows.

First, references to “district and superior” judges and “family court” are deleted as outdated.

Second, the amendment allows a court to request a supplemental affidavit if an affidavit is

insufficient to meet the requirements for a temporary order.

II. PROPOSED RULE AMENDMENTS

(NOTE: THE FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS HAVE BEEN PROPOSED AND HAVE NOT BEEN

APPROVED BY THE SUPREME COURT.)

Proposed Order Amending Rule 615 of the Vermont Rules of Evidence

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/PROPOSED--VRE615--FORCOMMENT

The proposed amendments follow similar amendments to Federal Rule of Evidence 615.

Proposed new subdivision (b) clarifies that a court issuing a sequestration order may also prohibit

excluded witnesses from learning about, obtaining, or being provided with trial testimony. A

court considering such an order should ensure that the scope of any order is tailored to the core

purpose of the rule of preventing witnesses from tailoring their testimony to the evidence

presented at trial and does not improperly intrude upon trial preparation or the attorney-client

relationship.

Comments on this proposed amendment should be sent by December 29, 2025, to Aliza

Harrigan, Esq., Reporter for the Advisory Committee on Rules of Evidence, at the following

address:

Aliza Harrigan, Staff Attorney

Aliza.Harrigan@vtcourts.gov

III. eFILE & SERVE AND PUBLIC PORTAL INFORMATION

eFile & Serve. eFile and Serve is the platform to electronically file with all Vermont courts.

https://vermont.tylertech.cloud/OfsWeb/Home

Access user guides through the “User Guides” link in the “Self Help” window and Frequently

Asked Questions on the judiciary’s website at www.vermontjudiciary.org/efiling

Fees. Select the party you represent as the “person responsible for fees” in the fee section of the

filing process. Do not select more than one party or you will incur an additional efiling user fee.

For technical support regarding eFile, please contact Tyler Technologies at 800-297-5377 or

efiling.support@tylertech.com

If you have procedural questions about eFile, please email the judiciary at

EFileSupport@vtcourts.gov

Email Notification. If you are not receiving email notifications, see the information on the

suppression list Why was my email placed on the Suppression List? – eFile (zendesk.com). To

ensure proper delivery, please “safelist” your email

https://odysseyfileandserve.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360046887411.

Vermont Judiciary Public Portal. The Public Portal allows you to view case files.

https://portal.vtcourts.gov/Portal

Registration is required for elevated access. The Public Portal User Guide contains instructions on

how to register and request elevated access.

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/about-vermont-judiciary/public-portal

For technical support regarding the Public Portal, please contact the Vermont Judiciary’s

HelpDesk at itsupport@vtcourts.gov When emailing, please write “Public Portal” in the subject

line.

IV. FILING OF EXHIBITS FOR EVIDENTIARY HEARING

All electronically filed documents (including exhibit lists and exhibits) must be submitted in PDF

format. The Vermont Judiciary’s website provides detailed instructions on how to submit exhibits

for use at trials and other kinds of evidentiary hearings.

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/FilersGuidetoExhibitsforHearings

V. MISCELLANEOUS

a. Court Forms

Court forms are constantly being updated and are available on the judiciary website

https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/court-forms

To report any form question or concern use the feedback form on the website

http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/website-feedback-form

b. Obligation under A.O. 41

Attorneys are reminded that an “attorney must report to the State Court Administrator within

thirty days any change of the office mailing or electronic mail address” and that “[n]otice sent to a

reported address is sufficient even if not received by the attorney because of failure to report the

proper address or failure of delivery not caused by the court.” A.O. 41, § 4(c). To update changes

in your contact information, please access your attorney account with the Attorney Portal

c. Receipt of Court Notices and Orders (eCabinet)

The Vermont courts send all court-issued documents, including hearing notices and orders, to

attorneys by email using the email addresses registered in eCabinet. Attorneys may register up to

three email addresses in the system and are responsible for keeping the information updated.

The email address(es) registered in eCabinet are not used for service of documents filed by

opposing parties, which is done through service contacts in eFile & Serve.

To create an eCabinet account or update an existing account, attorneys must contact the

Judiciary helpdesk through one of the methods listed below. Please include your attorney bar

license number in your communication.

• Email itsupport@vtcourts.gov

• Telephone the Judiciary helpdesk at 802-828-4357

• Use the online form eCabinet Registration/Update (cognitoforms.com)

Updating information in the Attorney Portal or in eCabinet does not automatically notify the

other. It is your responsibility to update both. If you are a member of the Vermont Bar

Association, you will also need to separately notify the VBA.

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d. Notice of Vacation

Attorneys may notify the superior courts of their vacation schedules by emailing

CentralClerkReview@vtcourts.gov. The information will be available to all trial courts, including

the Probate Division and the Judicial Bureau, for scheduling purposes. Attorneys do not need to

send notices separately to each county or division of the superior court.

If attorneys wish to also notify the Vermont Supreme Court of their vacation schedules, they

should copy supremecourt@vtcourts.gov on the email.

e. Vermont Judiciary Migrating Virtual Hearing Capabilities

The Vermont Judiciary is migrating virtual hearing capabilities from Webex to Zoom. The

Supreme Court has fully transitioned and is using Zoom for remote hearings. More information

on participating in remote hearings can be found at Participating in Remote Hearings | Vermont

Judiciary

f. Standard Practices Feedback Form

The Judiciary Standard Practices Committee works to improve operations by developing

standard business practices throughout all divisions and units in the state. The committee invites

members of the bar to provide input through its Feedback and Suggestions Form, available on the

Committee’s webpage https://www.vermontjudiciary.org/about-vermont-judiciary/boards-and-

committees/standard-practices