Reorganization and Simplification of Court Structure (From Improvement of the Administration of Justice, P 17-33, 1981, Fannie J Klein, ed. - See NCJ-93134)

• NCJ Number: 93135
• Author(s): R N Kleps
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 17 pages
• Sale Source: American Bar Association
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Increased caseloads and decreased Federal research and development funds have required organizational and structural changes in appellate and trial courts.

Abstract

Appellate courts have incorporated permanent staffs of career research attorneys who assist in case processing. Such courts also use administrative offices, judicial planning committees, and judicial councils or conferences. Because increases in the number of appellate judgeships may pose dangers to the development and maintenance of a sound body of law, other organizational approaches to the problem of appellate overloads have taken place in many States. They include jurisdictional limitations on appeal; firmer caseflow management techniques, including staff monitoring systems; and word-processing, computer-aided transcription, as well as automated legal research techniques. The most visible changes in court organization during the past decade have occurred in trial courts. Federal assistance to State courts, provided through LEAA, has been the major incentive for substantial changes in State court systems. Although Federal funds were designated to promote court unification and simplification, the concept of a single trial court has proved elusive, and the recent development of alternative dispute resolution mechanism has complicated the simplification process still further. In the author's view, growing problems such as limited funding, popular disillusionment, minority needs, and employee pressures rather than familiar organizational ideals, will determine future changes in trial court structure. A bibliography lists 98 sources.