The Temporary Assigned Judges Program (TAJP) will be expanded in an attempt to lower a backlog of criminal cases, according to the judicial council chair.
"It indicates the justice system needs all the help it can get,” Signature Resolution managing partner Dario Higuchi said.
Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye announced last week that she will make available temporary judges to preside over trials and readiness conferences.
“Courts, prosecutors, and defense counsel will face a substantial number of cases as we emerge from regional stay-at-home orders and the COVID-19 pandemic unless the justice community makes a concerted effort to take action now,” she wrote in a Judicial Council Memo signed on Dec. 22.
The California Justice System isn't the only one experiencing a rise in cases.
“We’ve been seeing increased demand from firms around the country," Higuchi said of Signature Resolution, which provides private judges for mediation paid for by litigants.
Signature Resolution, which only mediates civil cases, is resolving disputes nationwide with the use of Zoom and other videoconferencing platforms.
“I don't see any downside since the Temporary Assigned Judges Program was already there and is just loosening up a bit,” Higuchi told the Southern California Record.
Cantil-Sakauye is expediting the application and approval process for judges applying to the TAJP as well as temporarily suspending limitations that exist so that more judges can participate in temporary assignments, according to the memo.
"Over the years, with all the budget cuts that California has been facing and the budget cuts that the judicial branch has been facing, they started limiting the number of days that you can do assign judging but it's back on," Higuchi said.
The Chief Justice announced the program's extension during a time when the state is experiencing a surge in coronavirus cases.
As of Dec. 30, there were 2,218,142 confirmed cases of the coronavirus statewide and 24,958 deaths, according to the California COVID-19 dashboard.
“There are a bunch of legal cases on the sidelines but our work has remained steady throughout the whole time with COVID, which means that it's probably additional work,” Higuchi said
Signature Resolution, which was launched three years ago, was impacted initially by the virus for about six weeks from mid-March to April.
“There was a freeze while everyone panicked but after that, we've had strong months, which made up for the fact that we did very little for a month and a half,” Higuchi said. “Other than that, we've remained pretty steady to last year's numbers.”
Retired judges available through Signature Resolution include Lisa Hart Cole, Edward A. Ferns, Joyce Fahey, Scott Gordon, Hank Goldberg, Lesley Green, and T. Warren Jackson.