District Court Assessment Committee seeks public comment

Members of the District Court of Appeal Workload and Jurisdiction Assessment Committee will take public comment at a July 15 meeting. Input from the public will help them fulfill their charge to make recommendations to the Supreme Court on the necessity for increasing, decreasing, or redefining appellate districts.

The 15-member Committee will hear from interested individuals during a remote public hearing. Registration ahead of time is required.

The 15-member Committee will hear from interested individuals during a remote public hearing. Registration ahead of time is required. Please email your name, organization, and contact information to OSCAmedia@yueziqi.com, including “Public Hearing” in the subject line. Sign-in details will be provided.

The Supreme Court will consider recommendations from the Committee as part of the process provided for in rule. As directed by the rule, the Committee’s recommendations will be based on five criteria:

• Effectiveness,
• Efficiency,
• Access to Appellate Review,
• Professionalism, and
• Public Trust and Confidence.

Committee members must file their report with the Chief Justice by September 30. They are directed to confer with chief judges and other representatives of appellate districts and judicial circuits, members of the Bar, and the public. Statistical and geographical background information about the appellate courts is available online to help provide context.

Committee members will hear directly from as many registrants as can be accommodated. If comment is limited by time or the number of speakers who are able to address Committee members, registrants will be provided an alternate outlet for input about the performance of the state’s five district courts of appeal. Those who register for the remote public hearing may address comments to particular district courts. Discussion of specific, pending cases would not be appropriate.

Earlier, the Committee distributed and solicited responses to stakeholder-specific online surveys. Those responses, in the aggregate and with individual comments from the remote public hearing, will be used to guide the Committee’s report.