The Maryland Judicial Branch consists of the Court of Appeals, the circuit courts, the District Court of Maryland, the circuit court clerks' offices, the Administrative Office of the Courts, the Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure of the Court of Appeals, the State Board of Law Examiners, the Maryland State Law Library, and the Commission on Judicial Disabilities. There were 250 judicial positions and approximately 3,600 nonjudicial positions in the Judicial Branch as of June 30, 1996. The State-funded Judiciary operates on a program budget and expended $154,615,857 in fiscal year 1996. For the Court of Appeals, there was a 9.9-percent decrease reported in regular docket filings, and terminations decreased by approximately 30.4 percent. The Court of Appeals disposed 951 cases during fiscal year 1996, a 2.1-percent increase over the previous year. A total of 126 cases were pending at the close of the fiscal year. Case processing data are also provided for the Court of Special Appeals, the circuit courts, the District Court, and the Orphans' Court. Information and data on judicial administration encompass the work of the Administrative Office of the Courts, judicial personnel services, education and training, judicial information systems, circuit court management services, the Select Committee on Gender Equality, sentencing guidelines, fiscal management and procurement, the District Court of Maryland, and the assignment of judges. Reports are also provided by court-related units (Board of Law Examiners, Rules Committee, Maryland State Law Library, Attorney Grievance Commission, and Clients' Security Trust Fund). This report also addresses the work of judicial conferences; the appointment, discipline, and removal of judges; and 1996 legislation that affects the courts. 62 tables