District Courts

I rarely post news from my home county because the two newspapers here provide web access only by subscription. The above-the-fold article in today's Jamestown Post-Journal- MERGING LOCAL COURTS- merits a mention, however, even without a link. The Democrats in the Chautauqua County Legislature have floated a trial balloon for a proposal to consolidate in one form or another 33 town, village, and city courts in the county into district courts. The article is short on detail, there is no formal proposal yet, and I can confirm that at least four of the towns in the county have not been consulted about it at all. Nevertheless, this is an idea that I've mentioned to some of my clients and I would hope, that, if nothing else, perhaps a test court could be established to confirm that it would in fact save money without hindering the effectiveness of the judicial system. We'll see. [Update: I understand that district courts exist on Long Island and one was recently formed in Broome County, and, by all appearances they make sense in that suburban setting- my question is whether they would be cost-effective in rural areas.]