In Support of the Model Time Standards for State Trial Courts
Resolution 13: In Support of the Model Time Standards for State Trial Courts
WHEREAS, time standards promote the fair and expeditious disposition of cases, establish goals for court and case management, set expectations for the public and the bar, stimulate innovations in court procedures and programs, and foster internal and external accountability; and
WHEREAS, the National Time Standards promulgated by the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) in 1983 and the Time Standards adopted by the American Bar Association (ABA) in 1992 have served as useful models for individual courts and state court systems throughout the nation; and
WHEREAS, there have been significant advances in case management and court automation since the COSCA and ABA Time Standards were drafted; and
WHEREAS, the improvements in communications and the speed with which transactions can be completed have resulted in dramatic changes in the public's expectations regarding the appropriate pace and efficiency of government as well as business operations; and
WHEREAS, a broadly-based committee led by COSCA, including representatives of the Conference of Chief Justices, the American Bar Association, the National Association for Court Management, the National Judicial College, and the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, with staff support from the National Center for State Courts, has prepared a revised, more comprehensive set of model time standards and recommendations regarding their use and implementation, based upon a review of existing national and state time standards, the experience in utilizing those standards, and available data on the time to disposition in all types of cases; and
WHEREAS, these model time standards are designed for use by the judicial branch leadership of each state as a basis for developing or updating state time standards covering general and limited jurisdiction trial courts, that take into account the procedures, statutory time periods, jurisdictional structure, demographic and geographic factors, and resources of their state;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators endorse the Model Time Standards for State Trial Courts and urge their members to use them as a basis for establishing judicial branch time standards in their states.
Adopted as proposed by the CCJ/COSCA Court Management Committee at the 2011 Annual Meeting on August 3, 2011.