The Judicial Council of Georgia has recognized the Dawson County Superior Court and the Hall County Superior Court as recipients of its 2024 Clearance Rate Excellence Award.

The Clearance Rate Excellence Award honors courts for demonstrating exceptional performance in maintaining clearance rates, a key indicator of a court’s ability to effectively and efficiently manage its caseload. Clearance rates are calculated by dividing the number of disposed cases by the number of filed cases and expressing the result as a percentage. Cases not disposed of in a timely manner contribute to a backlog.

Across both counties, the local judicial circuit closed over 7,000 cases for the second consecutive year. Dawson County Superior Court achieved a clearance rate of 109% and Hall County Superior Court achieved a clearance rate of 105%.

“Resolving cases is what we ought to be doing in the justice system, and this award appropriately recognizes our courts as doing just that,” states Chief Superior Court Judge Jason J. Deal. “It’s a proud accomplishment for each of our judges, but it’s also not possible without the dedicated cooperation from a host of stakeholders – the District Attorney, Public Defender, Hall County Clerk of Court, Dawson County Clerk of Court, the Sheriffs, Court Administration, and county leadership.”

The Northeastern Judicial Circuit is served by five elected Superior Court judges. Due to the high volume of cases, the circuit is currently assisted each week by Juvenile Court and Magistrate Court judges who sit in Superior Court by designation.