Posted on: Friday, October 5, 2001

Editorial
'Single-tier' court is a sensible idea

Chief Justice Ronald Moon has advanced a sensible proposal to meld the state's three levels of courts — circuit, family and district — into one.

It's an idea whose time has come — even if it likely will take some time to implement. The current system is not broken, far from it. But that doesn't mean it can't be more responsive to the needs of the people it serves and more reflective of societal changes.

Accountability and accessibility mean more than open courtrooms and posting rulings on the Web.

Over time, as laws change and bureaucracy grows, systems can become cumbersome and confusing. If the public and their lawyers must spend hours navigating through the system to figure out which court that claims can be filed in or abandon claims because they cannot afford to be in more than one court, then justice has not been served.

Moon envisions a court system administered as one with the flexibility to create specialty divisions if needed. That way, judges can concentrate on specialties but can take on other issues — with bureaucratic barriers gone — as needed.

Surely that will mean better and more efficient use of the court's finite resources. And with assignment of cases an administrative matter rather than a legal one, attorneys and their clients should find the court system more navigable.

New legislation will be required as well as constitutional amendments. But, with benefits so apparent, it behooves all parties involved to move forward in a timely manner to make this a reality as quickly as feasible.

It's a bold idea that needs bold action.