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It’s Always Darkest Before Dawnby Nick CasperThe California judicial systemis in dire financial straits. Itis not hyperbole to say thatthe current situation hasreached a crisis level. This is undoubtedlynot news, as it has beenkeenly felt by practitioners, judges,court staff and affected citizensalike.Since 2008, the budget of theCalifornia court system has beenslashed by $1.2 billion, a cumulativereduction of over 40 percent. AsChief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauyeemphasized, spending on the judicialbranch now amounts to only 1percent of the state’s general fund(down from a historical 2 percent), apittance to meet the needs of 38 millionCalifornians. Statewide, courtshave eliminated over 2,000 staff positions,closed 175 courtrooms andshuttered 61 courthouses. The operatinghours of filing clerks havebeen reduced, courtrooms routinelyno longer provide court reportersin civil matters and most countieshave been forced to reluctantlyeliminate specialty courts and vitalservices, such as alternative disputeresolution programs and self-helpservices previously offered to proper litigants. Work furloughs andjudicial vacancies abound.The real-world effects of these cutshave been nothing less than devastating.Filing lines at county clerkwindows—traditionally, a minornuisance—now can become all-dayendeavors. Splintered families facedaunting delays in reunificationproceedings. Domestic violencevictims are denied expeditious processingof their claims for civil protection.Business disputes, some involvingmillions, or even billions ofdollars, have grinded to a near-halt,resulting in unknown economiccosts. Unlawful detainer mattersare delayed, resulting in uncertaintyto both tenants and landlords.Civil fees have been categoricallyincreased to alleviate shortfalls,raising access to justice concerns,particularly for the state’s most vulnerablepopulations.Contra Costa County has been farfrom immune from the financialpinch imposed on the judicial system.The county’s Superior Courthas absorbed nearly $14.5 millionin cuts since 2010, and this year $8million in reserves that the courthad prudently amassed were sweptup by the state. All told, the county’sjudicial budget has been slashed by25 percent. In response, the countywas forced to take on a range ofausterity-type measures, includingclosing the Concord courthouse,reducing the Walnut Creek courthouse’soperations to traffic casesonly, eliminating or reducing severalspecialty courts, laying off fiveof eight commissioners and consolidatingmuch of the county’s judicialoperations to Martinez. Likeother courts throughout the state,Contra Costa County Superior Courtnow is faced with absurdly jammeddockets and overworked judicial officersand staff. Delays in hearingsand trial dates are unavoidable, andresidents in East and West countiesnow must travel to Martinez tohave their family and juvenile lawmatters heard due to courtroom closuresin Pittsburg and Richmond.Last year, in the face of thisgloomy judicial picture, a large allianceof California lawyers fromboth sides of the bar, called theOpen Courts Coalition (OCC), initiatedan effort to give a voice to theoft-neglected third branch of government,as well as to the 38 millionresidents who depend on the courts.The OCC encouraged participationby counties across the state to jointhe collective effort of reaching outto local lawmakers to seek a restorationof funding so that the courtscould resume functioning on a basiclevel of service.The Contra Costa County Bar Associationheeded the call of the OCC.In the beginning of 2012, the CCCBAcreated the Pro Bono/Access to JusticeCommittee, on which I serveas Chair, as a means of advocatingfor the beleaguered courts on thelocal level. In April of last year, weco-sponsored and participated in acourt funding rally on the steps ofSan Francisco City Hall, where severalhundred lawyers, judges, courtworkers and citizens convened tospeak out on the budget crisis. StateAttorney General Kamala Harris,Justice Carlos Moreno (Ret.) andother notable judicial figures deliveredstirring sermons regardingthe critical importance of the state’scourt system, and how the cuts10MAY 2013