Letter to the editor: Former law clerks explain case processing times in Appellate Court of MD

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To the editor,

Maryland’s intermediate appellate court, then the Court of Special Appeals, published its first opinion in the Maryland Appellate Reports on February 2, 1967. At the time, the Court was comprised of five judges, and its jurisdiction was limited to resolving criminal appeals. Over the course of the ensuing five decades, the Court’s jurisdiction, size, case load, and complexity of legal issues greatly expanded.

The Judiciary’s data shows that the Court, through standard deadlines and the tireless work of its judges, clerks, and staff, not only keeps up with the increased workload but has actually decreased the time to turn around opinions since 2015. As explained below, the Court has decreased the time to release an opinion despite an increase in the number of child access cases filed in the Court each year. The increase in child access cases impacts the scheduling and adjudication of all cases in the Court, as these matters are subject to strict statutory and rule-based time limitations.

By constitutional amendment, the Court’s name was changed to the Appellate Court of Maryland in 2022. As currently constructed, the Court has, with the exception of certain issues within the Supreme Court of Maryland’s original jurisdiction, exclusive initial appellate jurisdiction over any reviewable judgment, decree, order or other action of a circuit court, and an orphans’ court. Its jurisdiction is so broad that it essentially functions as an appellate court of general jurisdiction. The Court’s 15 active judges and recalled senior judges are responsible for adjudicating over 1,000 appeals each year. Most of these appeals involve voluminous trial transcripts, extensive records, and/or intricate legal issues.

The Court adopted “case time standards” for civil and criminal cases in Fiscal Year 2014. Under these standards, the Court endeavored to adjudicate 80% of all civil and criminal direct appeals within nine months (270 days) of argument or submission of the case on the briefs. Beginning in Fiscal Year 2015, the Administrative Office of the Courts began publishing annual reports of the Appellate Court’s case processing performance. The case time standards were revised in November 2022 to provide that the Court should adjudicate 90% of criminal and civil direct appeals within nine months (270 days) and 100% of these cases within one year of argument or submission of the case on the briefs.

The data published in the annual case processing performance reports demonstrates that the average time from argument or submission on the briefs to decision in direct civil and criminal cases has markedly decreased over the last 10 years:

At its peak in fiscal year 2015, the average time to opinion was 125 days and the median time to opinion was 78 days. Case processing times were lowest in fiscal year 2023, likely due to a decreased caseload brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The average time to opinion in fiscal year 2025 was down by 30 days (95 days to opinion) as compared to the peak in 2015. The median time was, likewise, down by 26 days (52 days to opinion) as compared to the 2015 peak.

The percentage of direct civil and criminal cases that were resolved within nine months of argument or submission on the briefs has also increased over the last 10 years:

Since the case time standards were revised in 2023, the Appellate Court has also reported resolving 98.10% (fiscal year 2023), 97.80% (fiscal year 2024), and 96.70% (fiscal year 2025) of direct civil and criminal cases within 1 year of argument or submission on the briefs.

The Appellate Court is also bound by statutory and rule-based time limitations in certain “special cases.” The vast majority of these “special cases” are Child Access and Guardianship matters. These cases have two distinct time standards, each with a distinct performance goal: (1) argument or submission on brief within 120 days of filing the record in 98% of child access cases and (2) disposition within 60 days of argument or submission on brief in 100% of child access cases. The Court’s performance on these metrics has also greatly improved over the course of the last 10 years, despite a growing caseload:

Perhaps most notably, 60% of child access cases were either argued or submitted on the briefs within 120 days of the filing of the record in fiscal year 2025. This is up from just 9% in fiscal year 2015.

As judicial law clerks, we witnessed the care, diligence, and hard work required to manage the Court’s sizable docket. From the moment a record is transmitted, each case demands a careful review of the record, close study of the law, deliberate preparation for argument (if set), and thoughtful collaboration before a decision is reached and an opinion is issued.  Judicial opinions are not the product of haste (nor can they be), but of a rigorous process that prioritizes accuracy, clarity, and fairness while at the same time balancing the obvious need for speedy resolution.  The judges and their staff work tirelessly and with dedication to decide cases both correctly and efficiently while being mindful of the real-world consequences for the parties involved. The Clerk’s Office staff likewise plays an essential role, working assiduously to ensure that cases move to resolution. The undersigned thank the judges and staff of the Appellate Court of Maryland for ensuring that justice is done in each and every matter that comes before the Court.

* Each of the individuals below signs this letter in a personal capacity and not on behalf of any current or former employer or client.

Abby Hauer
Anthony May
Aryeh Rabinowitz
Derek Van De Walle
Eleanor Chung
John Karpinski
John Sanner
Jared Cooper
Joseph Dowdell
Julianna Smith
Lauren Lake-Jenks
Lisa Blitstein
Rachael Morrissey
Samuel Morse
Sangeetha Kannan
Sara Lucas
Zachary Babo
Zachary Kobokovich