The Bench & Bar magazine is published to provide members of the KBA with information that will increase their knowledge of the law, improve the practice of law, and assist in improving the quality of legal services for the citizenry.
Issue link: https://kentuckybenchandbar.epubxp.com/i/104896
PRESIDENT'S PAGE NO FUNDING, NO COURTS – IT'S TIME FOR LAWYERS TO STEP UP Doug Myers I n 2012, the Chief Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court was compelled to take an extreme step to keep the State's court system functioning. For the first time in Kentucky history, the doors to every courthouse in the Commonwealth were closed because of inadequate funding. The inadequate funding situation for the Kentucky Judiciary reached such dire straits that Chief Justice John D. Minton, Jr., reluctantly closed the Kentucky court system for three "furlough" days on August 6, 2012, Sept. 4, 2012, and Oct. 15, 2012. In the short run, such a step provided the necessary savings to balance the court's budget. These measures, however, have the drastic effect of threatening timely and reliable access to the justice system for individuals and businesses. The toll of underfunded courts is much more than three days of lawyer and client inconvenience. To address this funding crisis, over the past four years, 282 employees of the court system have lost jobs due to the downsizing of staff. Judicial vacancies have been left unfilled, serving to increase the caseload on the remaining judges trying to operate an overloaded court system. Valuable programs such as juvenile and family drug courts have been eliminated. Further, in the remaining drug court programs, the number of participants has been capped. Specifically, the fiscal year 2013 budget reduction plan which went into effect July 1, 2012, mandated the following steps: • Close the Kentucky court system statewide to furlough all Court of Justice employees for three days in 2012. • Implement hiring restrictions. • Convert 100-hour part-time employees with benefits to 80-hour part-time employees without benefits. • Reduce and cap the number of Drug Court participants. • Reduce operating expenditures by $1.6 million. • Eliminate the Kentucky High School Mock Trial Tournament program. Our court system has set aside innovative plans for new technology to replace obsolete case management systems. The court system is losing experienced and dedicated employees who are leaving to seek higher paying jobs in other branches of government and in the private sector. The financial stranglehold if allowed to continue will diminish the capacity of the courts to serve their constitutional role as an equal partner in state government. Growing caseloads and declining budgets reduce the ability of the courts to efficiently administer justice. Whether it is the state attempting to bring a criminal to justice, an accused individual attempting to clear his name, a private citizen seeking to renew a driver's license, a couple attempting to dissolve their marriage and provide for the care and custody of their children, a business dispute, or litigation to save a home from foreclosure, the court doors were closed. The crisis of court underfunding ultimately touches every person, every business, and every community within the Commonwealth. The courts are a necessary element of the inner workings of commerce, just as they are an integral part of our social lives. We all have a stake in an adequately funded and efficiently operating justice system. All Americans must insist on adequate funding of the courts, giving the judiciary the tools necessary to operate. The 4.3 million citizens of the Commonwealth generate nearly 1.1 million court cases each year. To service this caseload, the judicial system requires a minimum of three percent of the state's budget. Unfortunately, since 2008, the court system has experienced a cumulative budget reduction of 48 percent. As lawyers, it is time that we step up to the plate and address this matter. We must reach out to our legislative representatives who are in charge of the budgets for the Commonwealth. It is important that we, as lawyers who have an understanding of the judicial system, communicate with our representatives. We must convey the lesson of civics that teaches the importance of separation of powers and the system of checks and balances. In this system, the courts play an essential role. Without adequate funding, the role will be sacrificed and the safeguards of democracy lost. The KBA is preparing to take bold steps as well to work toward a solution. The Bar will work work with judges and other leaders in the judicial system to educate the public and reach out to legislators to address the need for adequate funding of the judicial system. This organized effort will begin with KBA's Legislative Outreach Day on February 21 and will continue until the financial needs of our justice system are met. January 2013 Bench & Bar 3