Wednesday, Augu. 14, 20001
Page 4
Lawsuit Filings Remained Steady Around State Last Year—Judicial Council
By a MetNews Staff Writer
New lawsuit filings in superior courts around the state remained steady last year but Supreme Court filings were up, the state Judicial Council reported yesterday.
About 8.5 million civil and criminal actions were filed in the 1999-2000 court year, with slight declines in domestic relations filings after a decade-long boom of 52 percent, the council reported. Total lawsuit filings were up 17 percent in the last year, while new juvenile delinquency cases dropped seven percent and general criminal complaints remained steady.
There were 8 million cases dispositions at the trial court level last year, about the same as the year before, the council said.
The statistics were released as part of the Judicial Council’s 2001 annual report.
The report showed a huge jump in original filings in the Supreme Court, with 3,114 such cases filed. The figures are up 163 percent from a decade ago, and 16 percent from the previous year.
Twelve death penalty cases moved through the court, about average for the last several years.
The high court saw a nine percent hike in total filings, but an increase in dispositions of only 3 percent.
In the Courts of Appeal, the workload remained about the same as the year before, with slight increases in juvenile cases and drops general criminal filings
The council’s report also detailed accomplishments in increasing the number of judgeships around the state, and efforts to improve court facilities, availability of interpreters, and improvement in the treatment of jurors.
Copyright 2001, Metropolitan News Company