Cases left in legal limbo as DC faces critical judge shortage

WASHINGTON - D.C. residents rely on the local courts for some of the most important decisions in their lives, from child custody to keeping a home, but because Congress refuses to call a vote to fill much-needed vacancies, thousands will have to wait. 

As the saying goes — justice delayed is justice denied. That's exactly what is happening for the thousands of D.C. residents forced to wait to have their case resolved in part because of a backlog at the D.C. Superior Court. They do not have nearly enough judges to do the work of the people in the District. 

There are ten judicial nominees ready to pitch in. All they need is a thumbs up or down from the Senate but that looks unlikely to happen this Congress.

"Every day, people are unable to get very serious matters heard before the court which is the only place they can resolve their issues because we don't have enough judges to be able to schedule these matters," said Christina Jackson, executive director of the Washington Council of Lawyers. 

Jackson says that right now, judges are double and triple-booking trials on their calendars just to get them on the books to comply with laws requiring a speedy trial. 

Since 2022, there has been a 54% increase in felony case filings. In the last ten years, cases have doubled in the domestic violence division. Last year, four domestic violence judges were assigned more than 6,000 new cases that usually involved violent or emergency circumstances requiring a same-day resolution.

Right now, D.C. Superior Court has nine vacancies but eight nominees are ready to go — all they need is a Senate floor vote. The D.C. Court of Appeals has two vacancies and two nominees also ready to go with a floor vote.

If these judges are not confirmed, the entire nomination process starts over again next year, which takes months of resources, including from the White House and the nominating committee.

And while D.C.'s criminal caseload gets much of the attention, plenty more goes on behind the doors that tax judicial resources, such as decisions on whether someone stays in their home, whether a family stays together or whether a victim of domestic violence gets a protective order.