NCJ Number
73024
Date Published
1979
Length
107 pages
Annotation
Statistical data reflecting the activities of the courts of Oregon during 1979 are presented primarily in tabular form; the State Supreme Court, court of appeals, and tax, circuit, and district courts are included.
Abstract
In 1979, 279 cases were filed before the State Supreme Court; 334 were terminated and 72 were pending at the year end. A total of 61 percent of the cases were terminated by opinion, and 39 percent were closed by dismissal, transfer, or without opinion. The court achieved a total average time from case filing to decision of 362 days during 1979. The number of case filings in the court of appeals increased 11.3 percent, from 3,106 to 3,456 cases pending disposition at year end was 6.2 percent higher than the number pending in 1978. The number of appeals filed each year with the court has increased at an average annual rate of 19.6 percent through 1979. The circuit courts sustained a 4 percent increase in filings during the year, representing an increase of 2,504 total cases. Thirty-five percent of the 1979 filings were civil cases, 40 percent were dissolution matters, and 25 percent were for criminal offenses. The mean age of all criminal cases tried by the circuit courts in 1979 was 104.6 days from the date of arraignment to trial. The 599,935 cases filed in the district courts represent a 3,957 case decrease, 0.7 percent below the total for 1978. Traffic offenses made up 72 percent of such filings. A total of 213,149 cases were filed in municipal courts for the year, and 149,122 were filed in the justice courts. Tables present the data.