Human Resources Management

372 Pages·2016·1.77 MB·English

Michigan

Trial Court Administration

Reference Guide

State Court Administrative Office
Table of Contents

Management Overview
1-01 Michigan Court System .......... ... ............................................................................................. 1
A. Jurisdiction ....................................................................................................................... 1
B. Concurrent Jurisdiction .................................................................................................... 1
1-02 Judicial Power and Conduct ................................................................................................... 4
A. Authority .......................................................................................................................... 4
B. Conduct ............................................................................................................................ 4
C. Investigations ................................................................................................................... 4
D. Elections ........................................................................................................................... 5
1-03 Chief Judge Rule – MCR 8.110.............................................................................................. 6
A. Applicability ..................................................................................................................... 6
B. Chief Judge, Chief Judge Pro Tempore, and Presiding Judges of Divisions ................... 6
C. Duties and Powers of Chief Judge ................................................................................... 6
1-04 General Management Duties of Chief Judge .......................................................................... 7
A. General Responsibility ..................................................................................................... 7
B. Specific Duties ................................................................................................................. 7
1-05 Selected Chief Judge Resources ............................................................................................. 9
A. Online Resource Center ................................................................................................... 9
B. Administration .................................................................................................................. 9
C. Appointments and Vacancies ......................................................................................... 10
D. Reporting ........................................................................................................................ 10
E. Attorney General Representation ................................................................................... 10
F. Election Procedure Lawsuits .......................................................................................... 10
G. Jail Overcrowding .......................................................................................................... 11
1-06 Trial Court Administrators ................................................................................................... 12
A. Authority and Scope ....................................................................................................... 12
B. Function .......................................................................................................................... 12
C. Core Competencies ........................................................................................................ 12
1-07 Selected Trial Court Administrator Resources ..................................................................... 15

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A. Trial Court Administration and Operations ................................................................... 15
B. Best Practices ................................................................................................................. 16
C. Charts, Lists, and Other Guides ..................................................................................... 16
D. Reporting Requirements ................................................................................................. 17
1-08 Oversight of Friend of the Court Office ............................................................................... 18
A. Authority and Responsibility ......................................................................................... 18
B. Operations of Friend of the Court Office ....................................................................... 18
C. Local Policies, Administrative Orders, and Procedures ................................................. 19
1-09 Adopting Local Court Rules, Administrative Orders, and Plans ......................................... 20
A. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 20
B. Local Court Rules........................................................................................................... 20
C. Local Administrative Orders .......................................................................................... 21
D. Required Plans................................................................................................................ 21
E. Informing the Public....................................................................................................... 22
1-10 Court Relations – External and Internal ............................................................................... 23
B. Media Relations.............................................................................................................. 23
C. Internal Relations of the Court ....................................................................................... 24
D. Gender and Racial/Ethnic Issues, ADA, and LEP in the Courts ................................... 24
1-11 Jail Overcrowding................................................................................................................. 26
A. Chief Judge Responsibility ............................................................................................ 26
B. County Jail Population Management Plan ..................................................................... 26
1-12 Office Appointments and Filling Certain Vacancies ............................................................ 28
A. Circuit Judge .................................................................................................................. 28
B. District Judge.................................................................................................................. 31
C. Probate Judge ................................................................................................................. 31
1-13 Management Assistance ....................................................................................................... 34
A. Circuit Court Related ..................................................................................................... 34
B. District/Municipal Court Related ................................................................................... 34
C. Probate Court Related .................................................................................................... 34

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D. Court Reporter and Recorder Related ............................................................................ 35
E. Problem-Solving Courts ................................................................................................. 35
1-14 Performance Measures ......................................................................................................... 36
A. Authority ........................................................................................................................ 36
B. Trial Court Requirements ............................................................................................... 36
C. Resources and Updates................................................................................................... 36

2-01 State Court Administrative Office ........................................................................................ 37
Administrative and Education Resources
A. Functions ........................................................................................................................ 37
B. Management Assistance ................................................................................................. 38
C. Standing Advisory Committees ..................................................................................... 39
D. Manuals and Court Forms .............................................................................................. 42
E. Michigan Judicial Institute and Education ..................................................................... 42
2-02 SCAO-Approved Court Forms ............................................................................................. 43
A. Authority ........................................................................................................................ 43
B. Process for Developing and Revising SCAO-Approved Forms .................................... 43
C. Approval and Distribution .............................................................................................. 45
D. Modifying SCAO-Approved Forms............................................................................... 46
E. Standard Specifications and Design Criteria .................................................................. 47
2-03 Other Resources for Technical Assistance, Training, and Information .............................. 49
A. Institute for Court Management ..................................................................................... 49
B. Michigan Child Welfare Training Clearinghouse .......................................................... 50
C. Institute of Judicial Administration ................................................................................ 50
D. National Association for Court Management................................................................. 51
E. National Center for Juvenile Justice............................................................................... 52
F. National Center for State Courts .................................................................................... 53
G. National Conference of State Trial Judges ..................................................................... 54
H. National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges ................................................. 55
I. National Institute of Corrections Information Center .................................................... 56

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J. National Institute of Justice/National Criminal Justice Reference Service.................... 57
K. The National Judicial College ........................................................................................ 58
L. National Juvenile Court Services Association ............................................................... 59
M. Other ............................................................................................................................... 60

3-01 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 64
Case Management
A. Caseflow Management ................................................................................................... 64
B. Case Assignment ............................................................................................................ 65
C. Alternative Dispute Resolution ...................................................................................... 65
D. Appointment of Counsel and Other Representatives ..................................................... 65
E. Jury Utilization and Management .................................................................................. 65
F. Case Management Information ...................................................................................... 66
G. Business Courts .............................................................................................................. 66
H. Other Case Management Tools ...................................................................................... 66
3-02 Case Assignment System...................................................................................................... 68
A. Authority ........................................................................................................................ 68
B. Case Assignment and Reassignment Systems ............................................................... 68
C. Visiting Judges ............................................................................................................... 68
3-03 Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) ................................................................................ 69
A. Court-Related Alternative Dispute Resolution .............................................................. 69
B. Noncourt Alternative Dispute Resolution ...................................................................... 71
C. ADR Information ........................................................................................................... 72
3-04 Appointment of Counsel and Representatives...................................................................... 73
A. Circuit Court ................................................................................................................... 73
B. District Court .................................................................................................................. 88
C. Probate Court.................................................................................................................. 92
3-05 Jury Management ................................................................................................................. 98
A. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 98
B. Operating Responsibilities ............................................................................................. 98

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C. Authority ........................................................................................................................ 99
D. Transfer of Jury Board Duties to Trial Court ................................................................. 99
E. Scheduling Practices, Use of the Jury Pool, and Panel Size ........................................ 101
F. Orientation Program ..................................................................................................... 102
G. Jury Instructions ........................................................................................................... 102
H. Resources ..................................................................................................................... 102
3-06 Bail Bond and Pretrial Services .......................................................................................... 104
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 104
B. Types of Bond/Release................................................................................................. 104
C. Alternative Bond Documents ....................................................................................... 105
D. Forfeiture ...................................................................................................................... 105
E. Return of Bond ............................................................................................................. 106
F. Application of Bail Money to Payments of Fines and Costs ....................................... 106
G. Bond/Bail Pending Appeal ........................................................................................... 106
H. Bail Bondsman ............................................................................................................. 107
I. Third-Party Bonds ........................................................................................................ 107
J. Interest Bearing Account .............................................................................................. 107
K. SCAO-Approved Forms ............................................................................................... 107
3-07 Case Management Information Reports ............................................................................. 109
A. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 109
B. Required Reporting to the State Court Administrative Office ..................................... 110
3-08 Case Disposition Reports to State and Federal Agencies ................................................... 113

4-01 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 116
Records Management
A. Records Management Program .................................................................................... 116
B. Managing Case Files .................................................................................................... 117
C. Managing Other Court Records ................................................................................... 118
D. Managing Forms .......................................................................................................... 118
4-02 Records Kept By Courts ..................................................................................................... 119

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A. Court Records Defined ................................................................................................. 119
B. Filing ............................................................................................................................ 120
C. Case Records Kept by All Court Clerks ...................................................................... 121
D. Other Case Records ...................................................................................................... 123
E. Court Recordings, Log Notes, Jury Seating Charts, and Media .................................. 124
F. Other Court Records..................................................................................................... 124
4-03 Public Access to Court Case Records................................................................................. 125
A. Right of Public Inspection ............................................................................................ 125
B. Handling Inquiries Regarding Nonpublic Records ...................................................... 128
C. Authority for Restricting Access .................................................................................. 128
D. Freedom of Information Act ........................................................................................ 128
E. Providing Indigent Defendants with Case Records (applies to circuit courts only) .... 128
F. Sealed Records ............................................................................................................. 130
4-04 Record Retention and Disposal .......................................................................................... 131
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 131
B. Record Retention and Disposal Schedule .................................................................... 131
C. Record Reproduction.................................................................................................... 131
D. E-mail Retention .......................................................................................................... 132
E. Record Storage ............................................................................................................. 132
F. Disaster Prevention and Recovery ............................................................................... 133
G. Confidential Records Destruction ................................................................................ 133
H. Additional Information ................................................................................................. 133
Human Resources Management:
5-01 Chief Judge Responsibilities in Personnel Administration ................................................ 134
Part A - Administration
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 134
B. Relationship with Judges and Court Staff .................................................................... 134
C. Local Intergovernmental Relations .............................................................................. 135
F. Contracting Work ......................................................................................................... 136

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G. Court-Appointed Officers ............................................................................................ 136
H. Contacts ........................................................................................................................ 137
5-02 Personnel Matters Involving the Funding Unit .................................................................. 139
A. Mediation and Legal Action in Funding Disputes ....................................................... 139
B. Participation by Funding Unit in Negotiating Process ................................................. 140
C. Consistency with Funding Unit Personnel Policies ..................................................... 140
D. Collective Bargaining ................................................................................................... 141
E. Staffing Problem for Multi-Location Courts ................................................................ 141
5-03 Personnel and Labor Relations Law ................................................................................... 142
A. Equal Opportunity and Nondiscrimination – Federal Statutes..................................... 142
B. Equal Opportunity and Nondiscrimination – Michigan Statutes ................................. 144
C. General Labor Legislation ............................................................................................ 145
5-04 Determining Qualifications of Court Staff ......................................................................... 148
A. Source of Qualifications ............................................................................................... 148
B. Michigan Court Rules and Supreme Court Administrative Orders ............................. 148
C. Michigan Statutes ......................................................................................................... 148
D. Equal Employment Opportunity .................................................................................. 149
E. Administrative Order 1996-11 – Hiring of Relatives by Courts .................................. 149
F. Oath of Office............................................................................................................... 152
5-05 Ethics .................................................................................................................................. 153
A. Code of Judicial Conduct – Application to Judges and Staff ....................................... 153
B. Rules of Professional Conduct ..................................................................................... 153
C. Adopting a Code of Conduct ........................................................................................ 153
D. Model Code of Conduct for Juvenile Probation Officers ............................................ 153
5-06 Absences From the Court ................................................................................................... 154
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 154
B. Judicial Absences ......................................................................................................... 154
C. Court Holidays ............................................................................................................. 155
5-07 Liability Protection for the Court ....................................................................................... 157

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A. Performance Bond Requirements................................................................................. 157
B. Legal Representation .................................................................................................... 158
C. Insurance Coverage or Indemnification ....................................................................... 160
D. Insurance for Community Service or Work Programs ................................................. 160
Human Resources Management:
5-08 Trial Court Administrator ................................................................................................... 162
Part B - Trial Court Positions and Other Related Offices
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 162
B. Duties and Functions .................................................................................................... 162
5-09 Circuit Court Clerk (County Clerk) .................................................................................... 164
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 164
B. Appointment of Deputy Circuit Court Clerk (Deputy County Clerk) ......................... 164
C. Bonding of County Clerk ............................................................................................. 164
D. Filling Vacancy in County Clerk’s Office ................................................................... 165
E. Duties and Responsibilities .......................................................................................... 165
5-10 Circuit Court Probation/Parole ........................................................................................... 168
A. Probation ...................................................................................................................... 168
B. Parole ............................................................................................................................ 169
5-11 Friend of the Court Office .................................................................................................. 170
A. Function ........................................................................................................................ 170
B. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 170
C. Legal Assistance for the Friend of the Court Office .................................................... 171
D. Surety or Performance Bond Requirements ................................................................. 171
E. Duties and Responsibilities of the Friend of the Court Office ..................................... 172
F. Domestic Relations Referees ....................................................................................... 178
G. Annual Review of Friend of the Court Office.............................................................. 178
H. Grievances Against Friend of the Court ....................................................................... 178
5-12 District Court Clerk ............................................................................................................ 180
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 180

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B. Appointment of Deputy Clerks .................................................................................... 180
C. Term of Office .............................................................................................................. 180
D. Bonding of Clerk .......................................................................................................... 180
E. Duties and Responsibilities .......................................................................................... 181
5-13 District Court Probation...................................................................................................... 183
A. Establishment of Probation Department ...................................................................... 183
B. Duties of Officer........................................................................................................... 183
5-14 District Court Magistrate .................................................................................................... 184
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 184
B. Appointment of Magistrate .......................................................................................... 184
C. Appointment of Deputy Clerk as Magistrate ............................................................... 185
D. Term of Office .............................................................................................................. 185
E. Reporting Requirement ................................................................................................ 185
F. Duties ........................................................................................................................... 185
G. Immunity ...................................................................................................................... 187
5-15 Law Clerks for Circuit and District Court .......................................................................... 188
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 188
B. Requirement for Employment ...................................................................................... 188
C. Compensation ............................................................................................................... 188
D. Period of Employment and Discharge ......................................................................... 188
E. Function ........................................................................................................................ 188
5-16 Probate Register .................................................................................................................. 189
A. Appointment ................................................................................................................. 189
B. Judicial Responsibility ................................................................................................. 189
C. Entry of Order Specifying Authority ........................................................................... 189
D. Other Authority ............................................................................................................ 190
E. Duties and Responsibilities .......................................................................................... 190
5-17 Public Guardian of Probate Court ...................................................................................... 192
A. Authority ...................................................................................................................... 192
B. Funding......................................................................................................................... 192

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