NCJ Number
192910
Date Published
January 1988
Length
28 pages
Annotation
This study assesses the changes that State appellate courts have
made to increase decision output.
Abstract
The study applied a multiple time-series research design to State
court data, with the dependent variable being the number of
appeals decided per judge. The impact of seven categories of
changes designed to increase decision output was determined. The
study found that adding judges typically produces a corresponding
increase in the number of appeals decided, provided that filings
also increase. Assigning temporary judges to appellate courts
also helps to increase the volume of appeals decided. The most
effective procedural changes are those that reduce the burden of
writing and publishing opinions. Deciding cases without opinion
greatly increases court output; and reducing the number of
opinions published has a lesser, but still substantial, impact.
Reducing the number of cases argued also has a moderate impact on
productivity. The fact that curtailing opinion writing and
publication and limiting arguments increase appellate court
efficiency does not, however, lead to a recommendation that these
practices be adopted. Many have argued that such changes reduce
the quality of justice provided by the courts. The creation of
intermediate courts or the expansion of their jurisdiction in
itself increases the productivity of the entire appellate system.
This occurs even after controlling for contemporaneous changes,
such as adding judges, using three-judge panels, and routing
minor appeals to the appellate courts rather than to general
jurisdiction trial courts. Changes found to have very little or
no impact include reducing panel size, adopting summary
procedures, and adding staff attorneys. Adding law clerks has a
small impact. Overall, this study concludes that unless more
judges are added or efficiency measures adopted, the average
appellate court will soon fall hopelessly behind due to increases
in the number of filings. 72 notes
Date Published: January 1, 1988
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