Good news from the D.C. Superior Court: Despite the dreadful economy, the courthouse budget is reportedly in good shape.
The assessment came from Chief Judge Lee Satterfield today during a brown bag lunch at the court, where he answered questions from roughly 25 Washington lawyers. The judge touched on a wide range of topics, from the court's lack of space to its progress with making records available online.
Satterfield noted that because the court’s budget comes from Congress, it has had enough money to keep all of its basic functions operating full-time. Other state and local courts, he noted, haven't been so lucky.
"One state decided not to put workers around the metal detectors," Satterfield said. "We could never do something like that. Or closing on Fridays. They're desperate."
The court still needs more room, Satterfield said — an additional 50,000 square feet. The sixth floor of the courthouse opened up this year when the D.C. Court of Appeals moved to the Old Courthouse, but that floor only covers half the courthouse building. Satterfield said it will be used for new offices.
The judged ran through a series of initiatives the court is using to try and speed up its docket. Two judges now sit on the overburdened landlord-tenant court. The court is also experimenting with "blended assignments" for judges, who would split their time between different divisions to make the best use of their time.
Finally, Satterfield told the room that while the court was making progress making more dockets available online, it would still be a while before the court began posting PDFs of actual documents.
"It's not imminent," Satterfield said.
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