Court Jurisdiction and Organization: The State Judicial Council created the Court Jurisdiction and Organization Committee to study the ways that cases are allocated to and heard by court officials at various levels of the court system, and make recommendations to the Council. Appointed by the Chief Justice, the Committee members include two court officials at every trial court level (superior court judges, district court judges, clerks, magistrates, and district attorneys), the Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals, and two legislators. Committee recommendations endorsed by the Council have included extensive legislation to expand the jurisdiction of magistrates and clerks; reform the current system for appointment, supervision, and discipline of magistrates; and improve magistrate training, salaries, and other incidents of employment. The Committee also recommended measures to make trial court jurisdiction more flexible, including expanding the authority of district court judges to take guilty pleas to all but the most serious felonies; allowing superior court judges to handle traffic and misdemeanor calendars; and providing for the assignment of most civil cases either to superior or district court based on factors not limited to just amount in controversy. Only a few of these measures were implemented: raising the small claims jurisdictional dollar amount, providing for a two-year term for magistrates, and allowing clerks to take default judgments in uncontested divorces.
Judicial Branch Education: A Judicial Branch Education Study Committee was established to plan and develop a comprehensive, centralized approach to Judicial Branch Education (JBE) throughout the State. The Committee's work was completed and a report prepared in June 2002 for review and approval by the State Judicial Council. Seizing on somewhat unique resources available in North Carolina, including the Institute of Government, the Committee's central recommendation is to establish a Judicial College. The Committee also recommended that JBE programs use educational principles that promote continuing professional development; that JBE programs be guided by a curriculum that systematically addresses the needs of the people served by the program; that JBE programs be delivered in formats that maximize the opportunity for the participants to learn and develop knowledge and skills needed to perform their jobs; that evaluation be recognized as critical to the successful operation of JBE programs; that substantial additional funding will need to be obtained for JBE programs; that other organizations providing training to JBE personnel continue to be supported; and that the Chief Justice appoint a working group (a committee of the State Judicial Council) to advocate for the implementation of the recommendations.
The Judicial Branch Education Committee of the State Judicial Council was formed shortly thereafter to develop a curriculum of JBE courses and a strategy for securing State funding. In 2005, the General Assembly provided funding to establish a Judicial College at the School of Government at UNC-Chapel Hill.
Court Performance Standards: The Performance Standards Committee of the State Judicial Council is overseeing a project to improve court operations and public satisfaction by implementing a nationally recognized performance standards system for North Carolina’s trial courts. This system is designed to help trial courts identify and set guidelines to evaluate and improve performance, and thus become more effective and efficient, and accountable to the public we serve.
The project is being conducted by the AOC and involves the implementation of a web-based Court Performance Management System (CPMS) that provides court officials with up-to-date data on a few selected performance measures, and a web-based public survey that court users can fill out. For more information, click here.
Public Trust: Created in 2000, the Public Trust Committee of the State Judicial Council is composed of both Council members and persons from outside of the Council. In conjunction with the Council's Performance Standards Committee, the goals of the Public Trust Committee involve working to enhance the public's trust and confidence in the court system by improving court performance and communication with court users. Since its inception, the Committee has focused on projects to improve the court and civic education curriculum in the public schools, improve the quality and accessibility of informational materials about the court system, and train court officials and staff to provide better service to court users.