Cleveland Law Library Weblog

Ohio AG Issues Report on Mortgage Foreclosure Crisis

The Ohio Attorney General has issued a Report on the state's mortgage foreclosure crisis. According to a Press Release, the Report is critical of the entities that are loaning money under sub-prime lending practices. Click here to read the Report itself, which concludes that borrowers are not getting enough help from lenders, those who do get help are receiving loan modifications, borrowers either default long before their ARM rates increase or self-help their situations by catching up on their rising debts, and refinancing is disappearing as an alternative to foreclosure.

Federal Court Management Statistics Available Online

The U.S. Courts Library has posted 2007 Federal Court Management Statistics for all U.S. Courts of Appeal and District Courts. The data is available in chart or spreadsheet format. The appellate data provides overall caseload statistics and more detailed information on appeals filed, appeals terminated, actions per judge, actions per panel, and time frames for dispositions. Data is also available for each circuit individually, and the information for the Sixth Circuit shows that of the 4,818 cases that were filed in 2007, 2,517 involved prisoners or other criminal matters. The general and court-specific district court data itemizes overall caseload statistics, as well as filings per judge, disposition times, and civil and criminal filings by nature of suit and offense. Interestingly, although 5,386 cases were filed in 2007 in the Northern District of Ohio, 6,136 cases were terminated, and 5,772 cases still remained pending at the close of the year. Similar data is also available back to 1997.

2007 U.S. Judicial Conference Proceedings Now Online

The September 18, 2007 Report of the Proceedings of the Judicial Conference of the United States is now available online. This Report provides detailed summaries of the results of elections, committee resolutions and activities, changes in magistrate positions, and federal rule changes. Worth a read for those watching  progress and change in the federal courts.

Local Judicial Profiles and Info at Judge4Yourself.com

A good place to find biographical information and ratings on local judicial candidates is judge4yourself.com. This site is a service of the Judicial Candidates Rating Coalition (JCRC), which is comprised of The Cleveland Bar Association, The Cuyahoga County Bar Association, The Cuyahoga Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, The Norman S. Minor Bar Association, and The Ohio Women's Bar Association. In anticipation of contested March races, the site has posted information for candidates running for positions in the Court of Common Pleas General Division, the Domestic Relations Court, the Probate Court and the Court of Appeals.

Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Moyer on Public Records and Open Government

In a Press Release issued by the Ohio Supreme Court, Chief Justice Thomas Moyer discusses the history behind Ohio laws governing public records and open government. Moyer goes on to indicate that the Court is currently working on a drafting rules to ensure that court records remain open to the public. As part of this process, the Court is weighing issues of accessibility through the Internet with constitutional principles that give courts independence under the doctrine of separation of powers.

Cleveland and Cuyahoga County Bar Associations to Merge 3/1/08

It will soon be a 'done deal' on March 1st when the Cleveland Bar Association and the Cuyahoga County Bar Association formally merge into a single entity. Right now, a joint Blue Ribbon Panel composed of members from both associations is accepting nominations through February 14, 2008 for board positions on the new entity to be named the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association. A Press Release issued by the Chair of the Blue Ribbon Panel identifies all of the offices for which nominations are being sought, as well as qualifications for the positions.

Cleveland Muni Court Implemeting New Case Management System

The Daily Legal News print edition reports that Cleveland Municipal Court is in the process of implemeting a new case management system called CourtView at a cost of $9.3 million dollars. The system is supposed to be phased-in over 6 stages, the first of which is slated to begin with the Civil Division this month. The project is massive, with plans to transfer over 450,000 cases and convert over 6.3 million docket entries.

Medical Malpractice Claims Down 20% in Ohio

The Toledo Blade and Associated Press reports that the Ohio Department of Insurance has issued a report showing that medical malpractice claims were down 20% in 2006. Only 4,006 claims were filed in 2006, compared to 5,051 in 2005. Although claimants lost 4 out of 5 of their claims, their payouts were over $18,000 larger.

Pictures of Ohio's 88 County Courthouses Now on Display at Ohio Judicial Center

The Ohio Judicial Center in Columbus is now home to pictures of all of Ohio's 88 courthouses. According to the Ohio Supreme Court's press release, the photos came from various members of the community, as well as the Ohio Historical Society. The oldest courthouse pictured is from Clermont County in 1895, and the newest is from Gallia County in 1985. As icing on the cake, the Ohio Supreme Court is planning to post profiles of all 88 courthouses in the near future.

New Berea Courthouse on Hold

The Sun News reports that construction plans to build a new courthouse in Berea have been put on hold for 2 years. Cited for the delay are falling city revenues and higher than expected construction bids. With this postponement comes a delay in a court audit that was supposed to analyze the needs of the court.