MARYLAND JUDICIARY | SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON JUDICIAL COMPENSATION
Accomplishments of the Maryland Judiciary Since the Judicial Compensation Report of 2017 The Maryland Judiciary’s mission is to provide fair, efficient, and effective justice for all. As such, the Maryland Judiciary advances justice for all who come to Maryland’s courts. All judges serve to support the Judiciary’s vision of an efficient, innovative, and accessible court system that works collaboratively with justice partners to serve the people with integrity and transparency. Our judges collectively handle more than 2 million cases per year; every case represents a crucial juncture in peoples’ lives. These include approximately 3,000 cases per year at the appellate level, close to 300,000 cases annually at the circuit court level, and the remaining 1.7 million cases per year are handled by the District Court. Every day, Maryland judges are called upon to make decisions that have a profound impact on people’s lives. Our judges hear cases that run the gamut from traffic violatio ns to first degree murder, from landlord-tenant disputes to civil cases involving medical malpractice and complex commercial and technology matters. They hear difficult cases involving divorce, child custody, domestic violence, and human trafficking. They decide juvenile matters and are given the authority to terminate parental rights and remove children from their homes to protect them from imminent harm. And, they have the authority to sentence a criminal defendant in the appropriate case to spend the rest of his or her life in prison. In recent years, the Maryland Judiciary has expanded the role of its trial court judges, increasing their interactions with litigants through innovative programs such as drug courts, veterans’ courts, and mental health courts. Our judges are also supporting expanded services for children and families, juveniles, human trafficking victims, the elderly, the unrepresented, and the limited English-speaking population. At the same time, judges are adapting to significant changes as the Judiciary phases in the Maryland Electronic Courts (MDEC) initiative, works to modernize its overall operations, and strives for increased transparency by making more information publicly accessible.
Some of the recent accomplishments by the Maryland Judiciary and its judges include:
Modernization and System Improvements
➢ MDEC is fully operational in 21 of 24 jurisdictions in the state representing 87.5 percent of courts. Montgomery county will “go live” with the MDEC system in October 2021. The rem aining two jurisdictions, Prince George’s County and Baltimore City, are on pace for full statewide implementation by 2023. ➢ Trial courts are developing and implementing new case management plans statewide to improve overall efficiency, enhance service delivery, and make case management information more accessible.
➢ Courts throughout the state are held accountable with established case-time standards. For example, the Court of Appeals has met its standard of issuing rulings on all cases during
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