NCJ Number
77210
Date Published
1980
Length
133 pages
Annotation
This report presents statistical information on the activities of the Federal courts and related systems during the year ending December 31, 1980.
Abstract
Data provide information about the U.S. courts of appeals, the U.S. district courts, criminal and civil cases, probation system activities, bankruptcy actions, grand and petit juror usage, Federal public defenders, and community defender organizations. During the report period, a total of 24,122 appeals were filed in the courts of appeals, an increase of 11.3 percent over the previous year. Case dispositions also increased significantly during this time, rising 20.1 percent from 1979. During the past 20 years, the number of civil cases filed in the U.S. district courts has risen at a rapid pace. This trend continued in 1980, when the number of civil filings rose 7.2 percent to 174,370 cases. Criminal case filings in the district courts decreased slightly for the year, and case terminations decreased by 6.4 percent. Grand jury activity increased in virtually all categories. The total number of grand jury sessions convened increased from 4,689 in 1979 to 5,352 in 1980, a 14.1-percent increase. The number of jurors in session increased by 13,284 jurors, while the number of hours in session increased by 3,492. Concerning petit jurors, a total of 302,322 jurors were available to serve, representing an increase of 13.5 percent. For the second consecutive year, the number of cases assigned to Federal public defenders increased; the annual rate of increase was 5.7 percent. The seven community defender organizations opened a total of 4,039 cases during the 6-month period ended December 31, 1980. This represented a substantial increase of 23.4 percent over the previous year. There were 472,400 bankruptcy estates filed in the bankruptcy courts. Twenty-five text tables and 27 appendix tables provide the bulk of the report.