NCJ Number
69680
Date Published
1980
Length
32 pages
Annotation
Subsequent to massive restructuring, the Fulton County State Court is studied by the Criminal Courts Technical Assistance Project, and recommendations for improvements are made.
Abstract
The purposes of the study were to (1) examine the feasibility and desirability of converting the court's existing master calendar system to an individual calendar, and (2) address related issues dealing with automation applications which can assist the court in its calendar and caseflow management. The technical assistance report, based on interviews with administrators and judges and on the analysis of the Fulton county calendar system April 16-18, 1980, covers five major areas: the organizational and physical structure of the courts; the organizational and physical structure of the clerk's office; civil case processing; criminal case processing; and miscellaneous (e.g., pretrial release and warrant accountability). Major recommendations include giving the clerk (who enjoys the judges' confidence) the authority to modify the court's physical structure, considering court rules that place calendar control with the court rather than with attorneys, and consolidating similar functions within the clerk's office (e.g., all docketing and calendaring functions) into one location. The implementation of an individual calendar system is recommended only for those cases actually set for trial. The court has potential for numerous automation applications including automated, integrated file retrieval for criminal, civil and traffic cases; automated audit trail for cash transactions; and automated jury lists. The report concludes that present staff and court structure are well suited to accomplish necessary changes. Supporting materials (such as flow charts and organizational charts), which are omitted in this copy of the report, can be obtained from the Courts Technical Assistance Project.