Following caseflow management best practices keeps cases from languishing in the justice system. Strong continuance policies and meaningful hearing/trial dates help maintain case momentum. Courts can also leverage case management reports to monitor case progress. This is particularly important in cases with behavioral health-involved individuals, who might require additional hearings or filings around competency, rehabilitation, and treatment. In the criminal context, case management should also factor in important concerns like the right to a speedy trial and consider principles of differentiated case management.
Building on extensive research and findings from a four-year effort by the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) to determine the best way to conduct criminal case management, the Effective Criminal Case Management resource, and CourTools, a way to measure a court’s performance using principles of caseflow management, should be applied to and integrated with the behavioral health population.
Learn More About Caseflow Management
- National Center for State Courts, A New Model for Collaborative Court and Community Caseflow Management
- National Center for State Courts, Effective Court Caseflow Management
- Multnomah County, Oregon Case Study