Clerk of the Court John Frey Rests His Case for a High-Tech Courthouse

“You can plan your steps but you never know where you will end up,” said Clerk of the Court John Frey, reflecting on his plan to teach elementary school. Serving in his third eight-year term to his Clerk of the Court elected position, Frey has been an excellent steward of all processes involved in the Fairfax County judicial system. 

“When I graduated [from college] in 1979, they were not paying teachers enough to support a family,” he said. “I thought about being a lawyer. I have always loved kids.”  Specializing in juvenile law seemed right. 

After graduating from Hamline University Law School in St. Paul Minnesota, Frey returned to Virginia. Following his mom’s suggestion, he helped with Delegate Warren Barry’s campaign for Fairfax Clerk of the Court. “I always wanted to work on a campaign,” he said. After Barry was elected, Frey joined his team for two years. 

Working for the Clerk’s office meant handling land deals and real estate. “I had little interaction with juvenile court,” he recalled. 

Beginning as a sole practitioner in 1986, Frey specialized in residential and commercial transactions.   In 1988, he joined with Jim Autry to form the firm of Frey & Autry, P.C.  “When I went out to private practice I never thought I would come back [to public office],” he admitted. 

In November of 1991, Frey was elected to replace Barry as the Clerk of the Court, launching his public servant career. 

FOR THE RECORD!
Clerks in Virginia have more than 800 statutory duties. From adoptions to alimony, closings to complaints, handguns to heirs, the Fairfax County Clerk’s office is THE record keeper. 

Perhaps the most historic record that the clerk’s office proudly houses is that of the Last Will & Testament of George Washington, probated in Fairfax County Court in 1800. 

“You can plan your steps but you never know where you will end up.”

NVAR ENDORSES THE TECHNOLOGY TRUST FUND
A major Clerk of the Court milestone was revolutionizing the county’s record keeping system. “Everything was paper back then,” he said. “Nothing was computerized. We are  a ‘race notice jurisdiction.’ Whoever races to the court house without knowledge of another transaction is first and right.” 

The land recordation process has evolved from a menial, stamping, sorting filing system. At the front end of the technology revolution, beginning in 1998, Frey spearheaded Fairfax County’s migration to an automated land record recording and retrieval system. One aspect, called the court public access network (CPAN), houses more than 46 million images and indexes available for remote access for a $50 monthly subscriber fee.

“I will always be grateful to NVAR,” Frey explained. “NVAR can take credit for the improvements in the land records across Virginia because they approved the Technology Trust Fund.” He lauded NVAR lobbyist Mary Beth Coya’s support, which enabled the county to switch to the new digital technology.

“NVAR broke with the Virginia Association of Realtors® and backed the clerks in getting the tech trust fund,” he said. “Without that money dedicated to land records we would not be here today.” 

THE JURY'S OUT ON JURY DUTY
Frey also streamlined and enhanced the county jury system. “In the '90s, we used to pull numbers out of a hat but now we use a random number generator to select the jury pool,” he said. “We were wasting their time and taxpayers’ money,” he confessed.

Today’s improved juror experience is summed up by this juror’s post on Yelp:

“Parking is great at the judicial center. Jurors are given parking stickers so that it is free. There is also a $30 compensation whether selected or not. There is free wifi and phones with cameras as well as laptops are allowed in the juror assembly room. There are fridges, vending machines, cafés and cafeterias. Everyone was helpful and patient. They have a very organized process.  If I had to sit on a panel for days then this would be the place to be!”

FAIRFAX JURY TEAM DEPUTIZED DURING THE 2002 BELTWAY SNIPER CASE
“We are used to high profile cases,” Frey said. “Judge (Jane) Roush transferred the [sniper] case to Chesapeake, at its new courthouse. But the staff in Chesapeake had never dealt with a high profile case. During the Beltway Sniper Case, Fairfax County provided a jury management staff, a mobile evidence display unit and IT staff. “My folks were deputized for the duration of the Chesapeake trial,” he said.

QUALITY PUBLIC SERVICE IS THE POINT
The Clerk of the Court’s office deals with lawyers, citizens and other county staff.  “You have to treat people with respect,” he explained. ” 

The courthouse is not a happy place to visit. Sometimes it brings out the worst in people. He lauds his front line staff, who deal with the occasional cranky courthouse customer. One code of conduct for courthouse employees is that “you are never going to get into trouble for spending the extra time with the public,” he said. “We want our staff to treat the meanest person at the counter the same way they would treat their best friend.”