2009 Kitsap County Budget Book - Kitsap County Government

SUPERIOR COURT
II.
Purpose:
The Superior Court is a court of general jurisdiction having original and appellate jurisdiction as authorized by the
Constitution and laws of the State of Washington. As its primary mission, the Court resolves the following case types:
• Felony matters
• Civil matters
• Juvenile matters, including actions involving both offenders and non-offenders
• Domestic relations cases, including Paternity matters
• Adoptions
• Guardianship and Probate matters
• Domestic Violence cases
• Mental Health cases
• Appeals from Courts of Limited Jurisdiction and Administrative agencies.
The Court fulfills its mission both traditionally, and through time-tested and evidence-based alternatives, including adult,
family and juvenile drug courts; individualized juvenile treatment court; mandatory civil arbitration; mediation; and,
mandatory settlement conferences.
III.
2008 Accomplishments:
• Completed a thorough review of pending criminal, civil and domestic relations case backlog inventories to determine
true number and age of pending cases.
• Resolved substantially more cases in 2008 than filed, reducing the courts case inventory backlog by over 1,000
cases.
• Completed 4 separate drug court graduations involving 56 drug court participants who successfully completed the 18
month program.
• Completed a Limited English Proficiency/Language Assistance Plan to enhance court access for non-English
speaking peoples.
• Successfully obtained partial State reimbursement for certain non-English and/or sign language interpreters.
• Successfully obtained partial State reimbursement for certain domestic relations Guardian ad Litem costs.
• Successfully obtained partial Federal reimbursement, through the State Justice Institute, to enhance educational
opportunities for judges and executive court personnel.
• Adapted General Rule 33 and streamlined internal protocols to more efficiently identify, evaluate and respond to
requests for ADA accommodations in the courtrooms.
• Completed a written evaluation of existing courthouse facilities, in the context of ADA architectural guidelines, court
security recommendations, and technology “best practices.”
• Completed draft revisions of a Juror Satisfaction Survey.
IV.
2009 Goals and Objectives:
We will contribute to Effective and Efficient County Services by:
• Developing and implementing effective performance measurement tools for continuous evaluation and review of court
case flow management processes, particularly in the civil and domestic case categories.
• Renovating Courthouse space to provide improved facilities for customers, attorneys, judges and court staff.
• Providing continuous training to judges and staff to ensure a high level of competency and efficiency.
• Taking advantage of potential State reimbursement for court services, including expanded interpreter funding,
expanded Guardian ad Litem funding, and any other funding made available to enhance local court operations.
• Conducting one or more community forums to assess and update the Court’s Limited English Proficiency/Language
Assistance Plan.
We will contribute to Safe and Healthy Communities by:
• Aggressively researching and applying for Federal or State grant opportunities that support enhanced or expanded
adult and family dependency drug court services.
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