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State Court organization
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Since 1980, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has sponsored the State Court Organization (SCO) data collection series. This collection serves as the primary source for detailed information on the structure and framework of the nation’s state trial and appellate courts. Some of the key information on the nation’s trial and appellate courts collected through SCO includes the overall number of courts and judges in the nation’s state courts; the selection and service requirements of judges; the governance, funding, and administration of the judicial branch; the jurisdiction, staffing, and procedures associated with the nation’s appellate courts. It also includes the administration, procedures, and specialized jurisdiction of state trial courts; the composition and workings of state juries; the sentencing context; and the overall structure of appellate and trial courts in each state. The SCO series also collects data on problem solving courts, jury decision-making, judicial discipline, and the use of technology in courts. Data were collected under the SCO project in 1980, 1987, 1993, 1998, 2004 and 2009.
The SCO data have been used to generate several BJS reports on the organizational structure of state courts throughout the country. See the State Court Organization series to view the reports.
Topics covered under state court organization include the number of courts and judges, judicial selection, jury qualifications and verdict rules, and processing and sentencing procedures of criminal cases. Court structure diagrams summarize the key features of each state’s court organization.
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