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Courts told to cut daily overtime costs
Originally published: April 7, 2011 9:23 PM
Updated: April 7, 2011 9:34 PM
By SID CASSESE [email protected]
Judges statewide are expected to become stricter about closing down trial sessions for the day to reduce costs under a new court system push to cut spending.
David Bookstaver, a spokesman for the state courts, said "every effort is being made to save the jobs, including court officers, clerks and court reporters."
He said that where a judge might have let a session run a little over, so that a witness on the stand didn't have to return the next day, "Well, now, the witness must come back the next day."
"Our difficult fiscal situation requires that we reduce spending," Ann Pfau, the state's chief administrative judge, said in a letter Wednesday to administrative and presiding judges.
Pfau said layoffs could "be mitigated" by eliminating nonessential spending.
"To avoid overtime resulting from extended courtroom sessions, court proceedings . . . generally should end no later than 4:30 p.m.," Pfau said.
Also, Pfau said juries "generally should be excused for lunch . . . [saving] considerable court officer and court clerk overtime costs, as well as the cost of juror lunches."
State court budgets, already reduced $100 million by the court administration, will be cut $70 million more by the governor's office.
Suffolk's Administrative Judge C. Randall Hinrichs said the new policy "is clearly necessary given the present fiscal crisis. Every effort will be made in Suffolk County to ensure that the business of the courts will continue to be conducted as productively as possible."
Originally published: April 7, 2011 9:23 PM
Updated: April 7, 2011 9:34 PM
By SID CASSESE [email protected]
Judges statewide are expected to become stricter about closing down trial sessions for the day to reduce costs under a new court system push to cut spending.
David Bookstaver, a spokesman for the state courts, said "every effort is being made to save the jobs, including court officers, clerks and court reporters."
He said that where a judge might have let a session run a little over, so that a witness on the stand didn't have to return the next day, "Well, now, the witness must come back the next day."
"Our difficult fiscal situation requires that we reduce spending," Ann Pfau, the state's chief administrative judge, said in a letter Wednesday to administrative and presiding judges.
Pfau said layoffs could "be mitigated" by eliminating nonessential spending.
"To avoid overtime resulting from extended courtroom sessions, court proceedings . . . generally should end no later than 4:30 p.m.," Pfau said.
Also, Pfau said juries "generally should be excused for lunch . . . [saving] considerable court officer and court clerk overtime costs, as well as the cost of juror lunches."
State court budgets, already reduced $100 million by the court administration, will be cut $70 million more by the governor's office.
Suffolk's Administrative Judge C. Randall Hinrichs said the new policy "is clearly necessary given the present fiscal crisis. Every effort will be made in Suffolk County to ensure that the business of the courts will continue to be conducted as productively as possible."
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