NCJ Number
85809
Date Published
1979
Length
64 pages
Annotation
The report describes the structure of Alaska's court system and its fiscal procedures and reviews issues requiring legislative attention.
Abstract
Alaska has a unified court system and budgeting procedure. The court system presents its appropriation directly to the State legislature and allocates its budget with little public input. It has initiated a small claims court and special procedures for family law problems and mail-in bail for traffic citations, as well as modified calendaring and case flow policies and computer case information systems. The court supports establishment of an intermediate appellate court to handle the substantial rise in appellate filings and resultant case backlogs. It seems to prefer the introduction of legislation establishing a separate conflicts office to handle representation of indigents in conflict cases. Budget allocations and 12 references are appended.