What time-frame measures exist for trial and appellate courts?
Courts measure case-processing time by external or internal time frames. Trial courts may rely upon one or more of the following time-frame measures: • American Bar Association (ABA) Standards of Timely Disposition • ABA Standards Relating to Trial Courts (1992) • Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) National Time Standards (1983) • Comparison with other courts reported in national studies (e.g., Reexamining the Pace of Litigation [Williamsburg, VA: National Center for State Courts, 1991]) • Statutory or constitutional mandates • Court rules • Informal policy or practice • Past court performance • Comparison to annually established goals Appellate courts may rely upon one or more of the following time-frame measures: • ABA Reference Models for State Intermediate Appellate Courts and Courts of Last Resort • ABA Standards Relating to Appellate Courts (1994) • Comparison with other courts reported in national studies (e.g.
