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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowDomestic relations case-type designations will change in 2017, from “DR” for all case types to “DC” for cases in which children are involved and “DN” for those without children. The change was announced in an Indiana Supreme Court order issued Friday.
The court also is adding new case-type designations for tax sales: “TS” for an application for judgment in a tax sale, and “TP” for a verified petition for issuance of a tax deed. These cases commonly are filed with an “MI” miscellaneous designation.
All the new case-type designations take effect Jan. 1, 2017. Domestic relations cases filed through Dec. 31 of this year will continue to bear the “DR” case type.
The changes are among the recommendations of the recent Indiana Caseload Assessment Plan to Utilize Resources Efficiently — the largest weighted-caseload study ever undertaken for state trial courts.
The report said domestic relations cases involving children typically consume far more judicial resources than those without kids. Judicial officers surveyed on average said they didn’t have enough time for bench trials, jury trials or post-judgment activities for domestic cases involving children, though most said they usually have sufficient time for these activities in cases where no kids are involved.
Likewise, judicial officers surveyed said tax sale cases that would be designated “TP” take about six times as long to handle as those that would be designated “TS.”
Designating the case types will improve case management and trial court resource allocation, the report said.
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