When the Alcovy Judicial Circuit, which covers Newton and Walton counties, built a new court website, one of the considerations was how to serve litigants who don’t have lawyers.

Superior Court Judge Samuel D. Ozburn said 40 to 50 percent of the parties in the court’s domestic actions are now pro se.

He calls it a sign of the economic times. “People just can’t afford an attorney,” he said. “Someone loses their job and gets $5,000 behind in their child support, then they can’t afford to pay an attorney $2,500. They have to do the best they can on their own.”

The court’s new website, which went live this week, features a rich repository of forms, which Ozburn said are useful to attorneys, though the court knows they will be used heavily by pro se parties. Ozburn said the court often receives filings with forms from other counties with names crossed out as people struggle to put together a case, “and that places us in a tough position.” He emphasized that the court is careful not to dispense legal advice, “but we want to help people access the courts.” Attorneys don’t mind the court helping pro se litigants, he added, because they know that people using the forms can’t afford to buy legal services.

Ozburn added that the website’s expanded information on courts, personnel and procedures, as well as downloadable calendars for each judge, should be especially useful for lawyers who visit the circuit. He estimated that about half of the attorneys who make appearances in the circuit are from elsewhere in Georgia—primarily the Athens and Gwinnett areas, but also Fulton and DeKalb.

The website is alcovycircuit.com.

Contributor: Ed Bean in Uncategorized | subscribe to rss |   share