Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Harold Melton (Supreme Court of Georgia).
ATLANTA - An order from the Georgia Supreme Court extends the Statewide Judicial Emergency that has been in place at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic through the end of June, but is expected to be the last one.
Chief Justice Harold D. Melton issued the emergency order back on March 14, 2020. The order had been renewed 15 times, but the chief justice will not be extending an additional month after this month.
June 7 will be the final extension, the chief said during a virtual emergency meeting with the state’s Judicial Council, the policy-making body for the judiciary, on Friday. He also said he will be issuing a formal "Notice of Expected Termination of Statewide Judicial Emergency."
"We’ve been looking at the trend lines in the governor’s public health emergency orders based on revised CDC guidelines and the decline in COVID-19 rates across the state. Because I am doubtful that the Governor will continue the public health emergency beyond June 30, 2021, I do not expect to issue another order extending beyond June 30 the Statewide Judicial Emergency that has been in place for nearly 15 months already," he said. "As we have been advising for some time now, courts and litigants across the state need to prepare for how they will operate without a Statewide Judicial Emergency order in place," Chief Justice Melton said. "It will take hard work, creativity, and cooperation to get our courts back to full operations and to resolve the large backlogs of cases that have accumulated due to the restrictions the pandemic required."
During the emergency, the courts suspended most jury trials and only took up matters that were critical or "essential" to protect the "health, safety, and liberty of individuals." Those include warrants and restraining orders.
"With regard to matters not deemed essential functions under the Statewide Judicial Emergency Order, courts and litigants are encouraged to proceed to the extent feasible and consistent with public health guidance, for example through the use of teleconferences and videoconferences, to reduce backlogs when the judicial emergency ends," the original order stated.
Melton lifted the suspension in October 2020 on jury trials, but a spike in cases prompted the suspension on Dec. 23, 2020. In March, the chief justice again lifted the suspension.
"Thus, pursuant to this order, the prohibition against conducting jury trials is lifted and trial courts, in their discretion, may resume jury trials as local conditions allow," the order stated.
"I am very proud of how nimble and committed our courts have been throughout the entire pandemic to ensure the public health of all those who come to our courts, while safeguarding the rights of Georgia’s citizens," Chief Justice Melton said. "Our local courts are equipped and ready to carry the load the rest of the way."
Reopening the state courts may be one of the last things Chief Justice Melton accomplishes in his tenure as he announced earlier this year that he will be stepping down on July 1, a year before his term expires.
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