THE INCREASED USE AND COST ($50,000 IN 1969 TO $1,540,000 IN 1974) OF AUTOMATED INFORMATION PROCESSING BY THE CONNECTICUT JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT (CJD) HAS NECESSITATED AN ANALYSIS OF THE FOLLOWING OPTIONS: (1) CONTINUED RENTING OF COMPUTER TIME FROM THE CONNECTICUT STATE DATA CENTER; (2) PURCHASE OF A COMPUTER; (3) INVESTIGATION OF OTHER COURSES OF ACTION AVAILABLE TO CJD; AND (4) CLARIFICATON OF THE TYPE OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT TOOLS NEEDED TO ANALYZE EXISTING AND FUTURE COMPUTER NEEDS. AN EXAMINATION IS MADE OF THE FOUR COMPUTER-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEMS (CIVIL, CRIMINAL, JURY, AND JUVENILE) SERVING THE CONNECTICUT COURTS, WITH EMPHASIS ON MANAGERIAL AND TECHNICAL ASPECTS. THE ORGANIZATION OF THE CJD'S DATA PROCESSING PERSONNEL AND THEIR INFORMATION PROCESSING GOALS ARE DESCRIBED, ALONG WITH DOCUMENTATION OF THE CJD'S EXISTING COMPUTER CAPABILITIES. BECAUSE OF CONTINUOUS CHANGES IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AFFECTING COMPUTER DECISIONS, AN ASSESSMENT OF THE STATE-OF-THE-ART IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IS INCLUDED. THE CJD'S AUTOMATED INFORMATION PROCESSING OPTIONS ARE LISTED AND ANALYZED; RECOMMENDATIONS ARE MADE REGARDING ALTERNATIVE COMPUTER OPTIONS, COST/BENEFIT ANALYSIS, AND THE APPLICATION OF WEIGHING TOOLS. FINALLY SYSTEMS PLANNING IS EXAMINED IN TERMS OF CHOOSING A PLANNING TECHNIQUE AND USING A PLANNING-PROGRAMMING-BUDGETING SYSTEM IN THE DATA PROCESSING DEPARTMENT. CHARTS, GRAPHS, AND TABLES ILLUSTRATE EVALUATION TECHNIQUES AND CRITERIA. APPENDED MATERIALS INCLUDE A LIST OF STUDY RECOMMENDATIONS, A DESCRIPTION OF SELECTED COURT COMPUTER-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEMS, A SKELETAL COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF PLANNING METHODS, A GLOSSARY, AND AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF SELECTED PUBLICATIONS ON THE MANAGEMENT AND DESIGN OF COMPUTER-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEMS PUBLISHED BETWEEN 1962 AND 1975. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)