Long Range Plan for the Federal Courts As Approved by the Judicial Conference Judicial Conference of the United States December 1995 December 15, 1995 TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES: I am pleased to present the Long Range Plan for the Federal Courts approved by the Judicial Conference of the United States. Although it is based in large part on the Proposed Long Range Plan submitted by the Committee on Long Range Planning in March 1995, this version of the Plan includes a number of substantive and technical revisions among its recommendations, implementation strategies, and supplemental text. Judicial Conference approval of the Long Range Plan extends only to the 93 recommendations and 76 implementation strategies. All other text in the Plan, including commentary on the approved items, serves to explain the drafters' reasoning and provide background information but does not necessarily reflect the views of the Judicial Conference. As the federal judiciary faces the challenges of the next century, the Long Range Plan will provide an integrated vision and valuable framework for policy making and administrative decisions by the Conference, its committees, and other judicial branch authorities. While continuing to reflect our shared, enduring values, the specific goals and objectives set forth in the Plan can be expected to evolve as necessary to meet the needs of a changing world. Any questions about the Long Range Plan can be directed to the Long Range Planning Office, Administrative Office of the United States Courts, at (202) 273-1810. V L. Ralph Mecham Table of Contents Foreword ....................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1. Introduction .................................................................................. 1 Why Plan? ................................................................................................................ 1 History of Federal Courts Planning and the Genesis of the Current Plan ................ 2 Chapter 2. Conserving Core Values, Yet Preserving Flexibility ............................. 5 The Vision................................................................................................................ 5 Mission..................................................................................................................... 6 Core Values.............................................................................................................. 7 The Federal Courts Today........................................................................................ 9 Conserving Core Values........................................................................................... 13 Has the Crisis Arrived? ............................................................................................ 14 Chapter 3. An Alternative Future for the Federal Courts?.................................... 17 A Possible Scenario for the Future........................................................................... 18 Another Possible Scenario for the Future................................................................. 19 Chapter 4. Judicial Federalism ......................................................................... 21 Defining and Maintaining a Limited Federal Jurisdiction........................................ 23 Criminal Proceedings ................................................................................... 24 Civil Proceedings ......................................................................................... 28 Confronting the Effects of Allocating Jurisdiction................................................... 37 Impact of Legislation.................................................................................... 37 Growth of the Article III Judiciary ............................................................. 38 Chapter 5. Structure....................................................................................... 41 Organization of the Appellate Function ................................................................... 42 Courts of Appeals......................................................................................... 43 Circuit Size and Workload ........................................................................... 44 Resolution of Intercircuit Conflicts .............................................................. 46 Review of Administrative Proceedings ........................................................ 46 Appeals in Bankruptcy Cases....................................................................... 47 Appeals of Magistrate Judge Decisions........................................................ 49 Organization of the Trial Function ........................................................................... 49 District Courts .............................................................................................. 50 District Alignment........................................................................................ 50 Bankruptcy Courts........................................................................................ 52 The Judicial Conference of the United States has approved the recommendations and implementation strategies in this Long Range Plan to guide future administrative action and policy development by the Conference and other judicial branch authorities. All other text in this Plan, including commentary on individual recommendations and strategies, explains and supplements the approved items but does not necessarily reflect the views of the Conference. iii þ LONG RANGE PLAN FOR THE FEDERAL COURTS Chapter 6. Adjudication.................................................................................. 57 Rules of Practice and Procedure............................................................................... 58 Sentencing in Criminal Cases................................................................................... 59 The Jury System....................................................................................................... 62 Pro Se Litigation....................................................................................................... 63 Costs of Litigation.................................................................................................... 66 The Need for Case Management .............................................................................. 66 Case Management in the Courts of Appeals................................................. 67 Case Management in the District Courts...................................................... 70 Chapter 7. Governance: Management and Accountability .................................. 73 Distribution of Authority.......................................................................................... 75 Effective Organization and Operation...................................................................... 76 Participation ............................................................................................................. 83 Administrative Autonomy........................................................................................ 85 Accountability .......................................................................................................... 88 Chapter 8. Resources ..................................................................................... 93 Obtaining Adequate Resources ................................................................................ 93 Ensuring Lifetime Service on the Bench.................................................................. 96 Making Most Effective Use of Judicial Resources................................................... 98 Diminishing the Problem of Judicial Vacancies....................................................... 102 Managing Judicial Branch Resources....................................................................... 105 Budget Decentralization ............................................................................... 105 Technology and Facilities............................................................................. 106 The Federal Courts' Workforce of the Future .............................................. 108 Chapter 9. The Federal Courts and Society....................................................... 111 Equal Justice............................................................................................................. 112 Keeping Federal Courts Affordable ......................................................................... 116 Representation of Criminal Defendants ................................................................... 118 Ensuring Justice for Those Who Cannot Afford Counsel in Civil Cases ........................................................................................................ 121 Customer Service Orientation .................................................................................. 122 Communications with Other Branches of Government and the Public.................... 125 Communications with the Bar.................................................................................. 128 Chapter 10. Confronting the Alternative Future................................................. 129 Threshold for Considering Changes......................................................................... 130 Restructuring Appellate Review..............................................................................