17th Circuit Court
Dashboard
Access to the Court
Why It Matters
Measure 1: Access & Fairness
Definition: Ratings of court users on the Court’s accessibility and its treatment of customers in terms of fairness, equality, and respect.
Purpose: Many assume that “winning” or “losing” is what matters most to citizens when dealing with the courts. However, research consistently shows that positive perceptions of court experience are shared more by court users’ perceptions of how they are treated in court, and whether the court’s process of making decisions seems fair. This measure provides a tool for surveying court users about their experience in the courthouse. Comparison of results by location, division, and type of customer can inform Court management practices.
Clearance Rates
Why It Matters
Measure 2: Clearance Rates
Definition: The number of outgoing cases as a percentage of the number of incoming cases.
Purpose: Clearance rate measures whether our Court is keeping up with its incoming caseload. If cases are not disposed in a timely manner, a backlog of cases awaiting disposition will grow. This measure is a single number that can be compared within the Court for any and all case types, on a monthly or yearly basis. Knowledge of clearance rates by case type can help our Court pinpoint emerging problems and indicates where improvements can be made. Courts should strive to maintain a clearance rate of 100% by disposing of as many cases as have been filed and reopened in a given period.
Juror Utilization
Why It Matters
Measure 8: Effective Use of Jurors
Definition: Juror utilization is the rate at which prospective jurors are used at least once in a trial or voir dire.
Purpose: Effective Use of Jurors provides information on jury management practices so as to minimize the number of unused jurors who are selected for a trial. More specifically this measure addresses the problem of non-use of jurors due to settlements and pleas and the problem of calling in more jurors than are needed for the selections of a jury(s).
Number of Kent County Residents Involved in Jury Selection Process
Why It Matters
Measure 8: Effective Use of Jurors
Definition: Juror utilization is the rate at which prospective jurors are used at least once in a trial or voir dire.
Purpose: Effective Use of Jurors provides information on jury management practices so as to minimize the number of unused jurors who are selected for a trial. More specifically this measure addresses the problem of non-use of jurors due to settlements and pleas and the problem of calling in more jurors than are needed for the selections of a jury(s).