Judges burdened by heavy workload

An annual study again shows Montana judges are overburdened by a workload that sees them handling as many as 85 matters a day and more.

The study shows only two districts — one covering Golden Valley, Meagher, Musselshell and Wheatland counties, the other for Daniels, Sheridan and Roosevelt —  have enough judges to handle their current caseload.

By contrast, the Fourth Judicial District that includes Missoula and Mineral counties could use at least one more judge in 2011. The greatest need was in the Lewis and Clark/Broadwater County District, which saw a need for at least 1.45 additional judges, based on a standard meant to measure the time each judge needs to properly handle cases.

Judges say their growing pile of work is one reason they’re exiting the bench. Flathead County District Judge Kitty Curtis has been a judge since 1994 but is quitting at the end of this year.

“It’s not the kind of cases, even though some cases are difficult, it’s the quantity of work,” Curtis told the Daily Inter Lake. “I probably would be staying longer if you could ever get a sense that you were on top of things. I’ve gotten to the point that that’s too stressful for me and I don’t handle it as well as I used to.”

Curtis said that when she asked the Legislature in 1999 for a third judge in Flathead District Court, both she and  Judge Ted Lympus each were handling 1,500 new cases every year. Now, with four judges, she said the workload has grown to the same level.

“The per-judge workload hasn’t changed that much,” she said.

Missoula County District Court Judge Dusty Deschamps said judges have grown adept at juggling their schedules to make sure that even if justice is overloaded, it’s still meted out fairly.

“It kind of drives me crazy when I hear people talk about courts being inefficient,” he said. “My impression is that judges across the state are working efficiently and expeditiously.”

Court officials say not all of the news is bad.

With the advent of such studies, the process of adding a judge is now based on statistics, rather than the political maneuvering of the past. Montana’s annual study of the judges, conducted by the state District Court Council, began in 2006. The council develops policies and administers funds for state courts.

“Now it’s based on numbers,” said Beth McLaughlin, Montana’s courts administrator.

The District Court Council won’t ask the 2013 Legislature for any new judges, “even though we know the need exists,” McLaughlin said.

Each judge and his or her accompanying staff, including secretary, research assistant, law clerk and court reporter, cost the state about $1 million. The counties are responsible for paying for staff such as the bailiff and court clerk, along with office space and courtroom availability.

As the work piles up, however, the council in 2015 will probably seek a new judge for Missoula and Mineral counties, among other places.