Overview

• The North Carolina Judiciary is primarily a state-funded court system. The county pays for facilities. Its FY11 budget of $477.2 million was reduced to $439 million in FY12.  North Carolina will maintain the number of judges but will need to reduce the number of staff positions and the amount spent on operating costs. 
• To reduce spending, the North Carolina courts have imposed staff layoffs and delayed filling vacancies in the clerks’ offices and in judicial support positions.  They have reduced the use of retired judges.  Salaries of judges and staff have been frozen.
• The impact of these reductions has been substantial, particularly for the drug treatment courts which are now going through a restructuring.
• Technology initiatives include e-filing, an electronic document management system, e-payment of fees and fines, and the use of videoconferencing for some hearings.
• The North Carolina courts have developed best practices for family court administration, especially for abuse/neglect/dependency cases.  They are working on best practices for traffic administration.  They are studying workload formulas for their highest trial court.

Reports and Articles

• Edwards, Andrew. "Budget Cuts Impact Courts." Reesenews.com. February 3, 2012.
• Gary Wright. "Top Court Officials May Get Laid Off." Charlotte Observer. April 19, 2011.
• "Court Employees Face Short Deadline To Avoid Possible Layoffs." WSOCTV.com. February 3, 2011.
• C. Duncan Pardo. "Buyouts at the Courthouse, Layoffs Could Be Ahead." Raleigh Public Record. February 1, 2011.
• Johnny Whitfield. "Court Adjourns for Good." Eastern Wake News. October 13, 2010.

Gavel to Gavel

• Database. Search the Gavel to Gavel legislation database based on state, year, legislation category, or any combination.