Law Office of Lawrence Strid

STATE BUDGET WOES FURTHER CRIPPLE ACCESS TO COURTHOUSES

While the State of California funds the various county courthouses, the counties are responsible for actually managing those funds and administering the courthouses in their respective counties.  The Los Angeles Superior Court just announced the closure of 10 courthouses, including Beverly Hills, West Los Angeles, Malibu, Avalon, Whittier, Pomona, and San Pedro.  This is supposed to be phased over the next 8 months.  This will mean a delay in civil trials, longer lines at the courthouses that still remain open, and longer distances for litigants and witnesses to travel to court as their cases are assigned to the remaining courthouses that are remaining open.  In practicing law over the past 34 years, I have always had the opinion that the Los Angeles County SuperiorCourts were never run as efficiently as those of other counties. The Orange County Superior Court system remains a shining example of how the doors to justice can still be kept open, even if some cutbacks are inevitable.  As bad as the situation in LASC is, the situation up north in San Francisco is going to be worse, with most of the civil courtrooms in the main courthouse being closed.  The only bright side to the budgetary cutbacks is that we are still apparently able to fund the salaries of the members of the state legislature, so that they can continue their good work in administering the public's money for the benefit of all concerned (yes, this is supposed to be sarcasm).