As we mentioned, very few legal matters are actually resolved through full-blown jury or court trials. Most of the work of disposing of our state's judicial business occurs in less formal surroundings, such as conference rooms, smaller hearing rooms and the judge's chambers. It is here that most judges and court personnel labor through preliminary hearings, docket calls, hearings on motions, settlement and discovery conferences, researching the law and completing a myriad of other tasks. Similar to the analogy of the duck gliding seemingly effortlessly on a lake, the judges and court personnel are working paddles beneath the surface, to make the system work. In addition to the broad categories of civil and criminal cases, a variety of other kinds of proceedings are resolved by the trial courts.
Cases involving juveniles fall under two sets of laws.
These matters, by statute adopted by the Legislature, are closed to the public in most instances. The second is cases under the Juvenile Offenders Code. Public access here depends upon the age of the juvenile. A variety of proceedings fall under the probate jurisdiction. Besides wills and estates, judges also handle commitments of mentally ill persons or alcoholics, allowing and supervising guardianships, conservatorship and adoptions.