There’s a pretty strong argument that the state court system is underfunded. And there’s a pretty strong argument that the federal court system is underfunded. The Judicial Conference of the United States makes the latter pitch in this letter to President Obama, noting that budget cuts have impacted “all aspects of court operations,” including reducing the staffing of clerks’ offices and probation offices, slowing case disposition, and reducing funding for drug testing and mental health treatment for offenders. But “the most significant impact of the budget cuts . . . has been the reduction in funding for Defender Services,” including public defender furloughs and rate cuts and payment delays for court-appointed private lawyers. Somewhat similar measures have been taken in our state system, as well. In other news: Shakeup in United States Attorney’s Office. Staying with the federal court theme, I noted previously that the Fourth Circuit recently took the unusual step of criticizing the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina for what the court described as a pattern of discovery abuse. The Charlotte Observer reported this week that Thomas Walker, the United States Attorney, has removed several prosecutors from senior roles and has adopted new policies designed to increase transparency. Charlotte School of Law Is the State’s Biggest, But Is It Worth the Price? This public radio story notes that Charlotte School of Law is “the largest law school in the state, by far,” with 1,500 students, but that its bar passage rate isn’t great [...]
Faculty Coordinators
