Fewer cases filed in 2013 in state courts

There were 1,152,052 new cases filed in state courts in 2013, a decrease of 7.3 percent over the previous year, according to data released Tuesday by the Indiana Supreme Court and the Division of State Court Administration. The data continues to show the trend of a drop in filings over recent years.

Mortgage foreclosure filings, civil collections cases, adoptions and infraction cases all experienced decreased filings, whereas mental health, children in need of services, and termination of parental rights cases all increased in 2013.

The report notes that most of the decrease in filings is due to a lower number of infractions and ordinance violations.

Jury trials were held in only about 1 percent of all cases.

Fiscal data shows an increase in 2013 expenditures; total expenditures by the state, county and local government units on the operation of the judicial system increased 13 percent from 2012. This increase is partly due to additional public defender offices reporting expenditures for the first time to state court administration, according to the report.

The state spent nearly $134 million on the operation of the judicial system during the 2012/2013 fiscal year. Counties, which report on a calendar basis, spent nearly $287 million. Cities, towns and townships spent nearly $118 million on their courts.

The complete 2013 Indiana trial court and probation statistics are available at http://www.in.gov/judiciary/admin/3248.htm