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BILL
To
Guarantee the right to a speedy trial for all citizens
BILL
To
Guarantee the right to a speedy trial for all citizens
The people of the Commonwealth of Redmont, through their elected Representatives in the Congress and the force of law ordained to that Congress by the people through the constitution, do hereby enact the following provisions into law:
1 - Short Title and Enactment
(1) This Act may be cited as the 'Judicial Accountability and Case Efficiency Act.'
(2) This Act shall be enacted immediately upon its signage.
(3) This Act has been authored by Rep. Unseatedduke1.
(4) This Act has been co-sponsored by Sen. Dartanman.
2 - Reasons
(1) This bill aims to hold the judicial system accountable for the timely resolution of legal cases while ensuring efficiency in case management.
(2) It seeks to guarantee the right to a speedy trial for all citizens, a fundamental aspect of fair and just legal proceedings.
(3) This bill differs from the Judicial Standards Act.
3 - Timely Resolution of Legal Cases
(1) The judicial system shall prioritize the prompt resolution of legal cases in accordance with the constitutional right to a speedy trial for all citizens.
(2) To achieve this objective, the following measures shall be implemented:
(a) Case Management System: The court shall establish and maintain an efficient case management system to track the progress of legal cases from filing to disposition. This may be the system already in place; if one is not in place, it will be created.
(b) Accountability Mechanisms: Establishment of accountability mechanisms to hold judicial officers and court personnel accountable for any unjustified delays in case resolution.
(c) Workload-Based Flexibility: A system shall be established to automatically grant flexibility to the judicial system based on the number of cases pending in each court. This system will provide relief from strict adherence to established timelines and deadlines when the courts are experiencing an exceptional workload, as determined by the number of pending cases.
(3) The provisions outlined in this section shall be implemented immediately upon the signage of this Act.
4 - Case Timeline Standards for Criminal and Civil Proceedings
(1) All courts will follow the outlined timeline as established here:
(a) Following the filing of a civil or criminal case in any court, the judicial system shall have 72 hours to assign the case to a judicial officer.
(b) After assignment of a case, the presiding officer shall have 48 hours to issue summons for that case.
(c) Following summons, the case will proceed according to the established court timeline outlined in the Court Rules and Procedures.
(d) The court shall adhere to this outlined timeline for objections/motions and opening/closing statements.
(e) Following the answer to the complaint or plea, discovery will be initiated immediately.
(f) Upon submission of a motion or objection, the judicial officer must respond within 48 hours.
(g) Following discovery, the judge must commence opening statements within 48 hours.
(h) After both witness testimony and cross-examination, the judicial officer shall have 48 hours to initiate closing statements.
(i) After closing statements, the judicial officer shall have no more than 4 weeks to deliver a verdict.
(2) If the judicial officer or judicial system fails to meet these standards, they shall be held for "Judicial Noncompliance."
5 - Case Timeline Standards for Expungement and Appeal Proceedings
(1) All courts shall adhere to the following outlined timeline for expungement and appeal proceedings:
(a) Following the filing of an Expungement Request or Appeal in any court, the judicial system shall have 72 hours to assign the case to a judicial officer.
(b) For Expungement Requests: After assignment of a case, the presiding officer shall have 48 hours to issue summons for that case.
(c) For Appeals: The judicial officer(s) shall have no more than 2 weeks to accept or deny the appeal.
(d) For Expungement Requests: After eligibility is confirmed, the judicial officer shall have no more than 1 week to grant or deny the expungement request.
(2) If the judicial officer or judicial system fails to meet these standards, they shall be held for "Judicial Noncompliance."
Judicial Noncompliance shall be a summary penalty defined as:
(a) First offense: $1,000 fine toward the judicial officer in question.
(b) Second offense: $5,000 fine toward the judicial officer in question.
(c) Third offense and beyond: $15,000 fine and an investigation conducted by the Department of Legal Affairs into the judge's timely conduct. The results of this investigation shall be shared with Congress, which will determine the next actions.
(3) Addition: If the Judicial Noncompliance violation is related to the assignment of cases, the fine shall be directed toward the judicial system as a whole.
(4) The fine count resets every six months.
6 - Workload-Based Flexibility
(1) The judicial system shall adhere to the following workload-based flexibility system:
(a) In the event of a surplus of court cases exceeding the available presiding officers, the following system shall be enacted:
(b) Criteria for Activation:
(i) The system is triggered when the number of active judicial officers in each court falls below the threshold established based on the below ratio:
(ii) District Court: The number of active magistrates multiplied by three equals the threshold number.
(iii) Federal Court: The number of active Judges multiplied by three equals the threshold number.
(iv) Supreme Court: The number of active Justices multiplied by two equals the threshold number.
(c) Activation of Threshold System:
(i) The Threshold System becomes active within each respective court when the established threshold number is met specifically for that court.
(ii) District Court: Should the threshold number be reached in the District Court, all regulations over the District Court made within this Act shall be suspended until the case load decreases below the threshold, at which point it shall be reinstated.
(iii) Federal Court: Similarly, if the threshold number is met in the Federal Court, all regulations over the Federal Court made within this Act shall be suspended until the caseload diminishes below the threshold, upon which it shall be reactivated.
(iv) Supreme Court: Upon reaching the threshold number in the Supreme Court, all regulations over the Supreme Court made within this Act shall be suspended until the caseload falls below the established threshold, thereafter becoming active again.
(2) Inclusion of Cases:
(a) In instances where a lower court lacks all judicial officers, the cases from that court shall be included in the case count for the next highest court.
(i) Example: If the federal court has no judges and has three cases pending, those three cases will be factored into the case count for the Supreme Court.
(b) An Active Magistrate, Judge, or Justice is defined as a judicial officer actively presiding over cases within their respective court. Judicial officers on leave or vacation are not considered active if they are not presiding over cases.
(c) If all active judicial officers in a particular court are required to recuse themselves from a case, this Act shall be suspended solely in relation to that case. Once a judicial officer becomes available to preside over the case, or a judicial officer from a higher court is able to take it, this Act will automatically become active again for that specific case.
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