Delaware Supreme Court Building

The Delaware judiciary has released a four-phase plan to reopen the state's courts.

According to a press release, the plan, which is set to begin the week of June 8, was unveiled Friday in back-to-back Town Hall-style video meetings, first with court employees and then with attorneys.

Also on Friday, the Court Reopening Committee, led by Superior Court Judge William C. Carpenter Jr. and staffed by state judicial officers and court employees, judicial system partners and an infectious disease expert, released its interim report detailing the reopening plan.

According to the report, Phase One will involve a "soft" reopening of courthouse facilities, allowing courts to test their screening procedures at the entrance to each courthouse and determine whether further testing or training is necessary. During this phase, according to the report, only attorneys, bail bondsmen, private individuals posting bail, data miners and the media will be given access to the courthouse with social distancing and face covering requirements.

Phase Two will allow members of the public back into courthouse facilities, but courtrooms will be limited to no more than 10 people, not including court staff and attorneys, and will require wearing a face covering and social distancing of six feet.

Phase Three will expand the group limitation to 50 and will also allow incarcerated inmates back into the courthouse.

Phase Four will mark a return to what the report calls the "new normal."

"This new norm, however, is not a return to the ways of the past," the report warns. "Social distancing and the minimizing of large calendars are recommended and the courts should take the opportunity to reassess whether the lessons learned during the earlier phases should continue. The pandemic forced the courts to rethink how they have done business for decades and it is important that those lessons not be thrown aside now that some normality has returned. Doing events remotely can reduce costs, improve attorney productivity, and improve the safety and efficiency of our staff."

Read the full report here: 

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