NCJ Number
82118
Date Published
1980
Length
131 pages
Annotation
Current caseflow management in the North Carolina Court of Appeals is described and assessed, and recommendations for improvement are offered.
Abstract
Although the North Carolina Court of Appeals is ably staffed with judges, central staff attorneys, and other support staff, it cannot contend with further increases in its caseload without either making structural changes for alternative methods of case disposition or adopting undesirable alternatives such as denying appeals to certain categories of cases or having the supreme court assume part of the case. This latter alternative has particular dangers if it is done case by case. The court should adopt a number of changes, some of which can be done immediately without further authorization and others which require the cooperation of the supreme court and the legislature. These changes aim at increasing the speed of disposition of appeals without overburdening judges, who are already exerting a maximum effort. Recommended changes expand the jurisdiction and control of the court over the entire appellate process. Eventually, the court should address such issues as eliminating the printed record in favor of using the transcript and monitoring the timely filing of all appeal steps, not only those occurring after the filing of the record or transcript. Appended are an attorney's handbook; Rhode Island's information forms, criminal case processing proposal, and case tracking proposal; a case management article; and excerpts from National Center publications on microfilm. (Author summary modified)