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Court of Appeals chief judge warns of rising caseload and editorial backlog, supports modest budget increase
Summary
Chief Judge Michael Godola told the House appropriations subcommittee the Court of Appeals recommended a roughly $400,000 increase for fiscal 2026, described a backlog in edited published opinions and a pending caseload that rose to about 3,771 cases; he said the court may request additional research attorneys next year if clearance rates do not
Chief Judge Michael Godola of the Michigan Court of Appeals told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Corrections and Judiciary that the court recommends a roughly $400,000 increase for fiscal 2026 and is monitoring a rising pending caseload and an editorial backlog that may require additional staffing.
Godola told the panel that the Court of Appeals disposed of 4,613 cases in 2024 while receiving 4,883 new filings. "The number of new filings exceeded the number of dispositions in 2024," he said, and noted that the court's clearance rate has fallen below 100% for the past three years, leaving a pending caseload of about 3,771 cases.
Why it matters: Godola said the court's pending caseload reached a low of 2,557 cases at the end of 2021 (during the COVID-related dip in filings) and has since risen; he attributed the increase to a return to pre-pandemic filing levels, two judicial vacancies in 2025 and two judges with long-term illnesses last year that reduced the number of monthly case-call panels. The court has 25 judges; Godola said two vacancies remain and he is awaiting gubernatorial appointments.
Godola highlighted a backlog in the reporter-of-decisions office that delays publication of edited opinions and singled out the chief justice's request for a legal editor position to reduce that backlog. He said the position was estimated in the presentation at about $167,000 for one FTE and argued the delay in publication can impede public access to official opinions.
The court's current-year budget is roughly $27.3 million, and the recommended FY26 appropriation is about $27.7 million, representing an increase of roughly $400,000. Godola said that increase "represents less than one- to two-tenths of 1% of general fund expenditures" but that the court may return next year seeking additional funds if staffing needs in the research department are not met and the clearance rate does not return to 100%.
Godola also described facilities work: he said the court is moving staff from private lease space in Troy into state-owned space at Cadillac Place in Detroit, that bids came in under budget and DTMB will soon select a bidder for the relocation.
Committee members asked about remote work and productivity during COVID; Godola said remote work did not reduce production for research attorneys and that the court currently has a minimum in-office expectation that may be revised.
No appropriation vote occurred during the hearing; Godola said the court supports the governor's recommended economic increases and may seek additional funding next year to hire more research attorneys if necessary to regain a clearance rate of 100% or better and reduce the pending caseload.
