The District Court is divided into twelve geo-
graphical districts, each containing one or more
political subdivisions, with at least one judge in
each subdivision. Presently, there are 90 judges on
the Court, including the Chief Judge. The Chief
Judge is the administrative head of the Court and
appoints administrative judges for each of the
twelve districts, subject to the approval of the
Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals. A Chief
Clerk of the Court is appointed by the Chief
Judge. Administrative Clerks for each district are
also appointed, as well as commissioners who per-
form such duties as issuing arrest warrants and
setting bail or collateral.

ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF THE
COURTS

James H. Norris, Jr., State Court Administrator

Robert W. McKeever, Deputy State Court Admin-
istrator

Judith C. Levinson, Legal Officer

Peter J. Lally, Assistant State Court Administrator,
Research and Planning

Michael V. O'Malley, Assistant State Court Ad-
ministrator, Special Projects

J. Allen Hines, Assistant State Court Administra-
tor, Administrative Services

Jerry A. Powell, Assistant State Court Administra-
tor, Judicial Information Systems

Ernest L. Bailey, Jr., Assistant State Court Admin-
istrator, Personnel

Ellen Marshall, Assistant State Court Administra-
tor, Education and Information

Courts of Appeal Building
Annapolis 21401 Telephone: 974-2141

In 1944, the people of Maryland recognized the
need for providing administrative direction to the
court system when they ratified what is now Arti-
cle IV, Section 18(b) of the Constitution, provid-
ing that the Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals
is "the administrative head of the Judicial system
of the State." But it was not until 1955 that the
General Assembly took initial steps to provide
professional administrative staff to assist the Chief
Judge in carrying out administrative responsibili-
ties.

In the latter year, the General Assembly created
the Administrative Office of the Courts, headed

by a State Court Administrator appointed by and
serving at the pleasure of the Chief Judge of the
Court of Appeals. The State Court Administrator
and the Administrative Office provide the Chief
Judge with advice, information, facilities, and staff
to aid him in the performance of his administra-
tive duties, and to implement court administrative
policies established by the Chief Judge, the Court
of Appeals, and the General Assembly.

These administrative tasks include planning, re-
search, providing staff support for the education
and training of judges and nonjudicial personnel,
and preparation and administration of the Judici-
ary budget. They involve liaison with the legisla-
tive and executive branches, staff support for the
Maryland Judicial Conference and the Conference
of Circuit Judges, the operation of information
systems, and the gathering and analysis of statis-
tics and other management information. The Ad-
ministrative Office also assists the Chief Judge in
the deployment of judges to cope with temporary
backlogs or to address shortages of judicial per-
sonnel (Code Courts and Judicial Proceedings Ar-
ticle, sec. 13-101).

The staff of the circuit administrators in the
First, Second, Fourth, and Fifth Judicial Circuits
are also attached to the Administrative Office.

THE STATE REPORTER

Alexander L. Cummings, State Reporter

Courts of Appeal Building
Annapolis 21401 Telephone: 974-3539

Appointed by the Court of Appeals, the State
Reporter is responsible for the publication of the
Maryland Reports and the Maryland Appellate
Reports. Maryland Reports contains the official
opinions of the Court of Appeals (Const. 1867,
Art. IV, sees. 14-18A). Maryland Appellate Re-
ports contains the official opinions of the Court of
Special Appeals (Code Courts and Judicial Pro-
ceedings Article, sees. 13-201 through 13-204).

COMMISSION ON JUDICIAL
DISABILITIES

Chairperson: Richard P. Gilbert, Chief Judge,
Court of Special Appeals, 1987

Charles 0. Fisher, Sr., 1987; James H. Taylor,
1987; George J. Helinski, 1988; Marshall A.
Levin, 1988; Martha Eleanor Church, Ph.D.,
1989; Nathan Patz, 1989.