The Supreme Court of South Carolina

RE: Family Court Continuance Log

ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER

Pursuant to the provisions of Article V, Section 4 of the South Carolina Constitution,

IT IS ORDERED that the attached document titled “Family Court Continuance Log” shall be affixed to all active (pending) family court case files or case jackets, effective May 31, 2019.

The following procedure shall be followed regarding the use of the Family Court Continuance Log:

1. The Clerk of Court shall be responsible for notating the case caption and case number on the continuance log and ensuring the log is affixed to all active/pending case files. The case caption and case number shall be completed and the log affixed to the case file prior to delivering the file to the presiding judge for review or hearing;
   
   
2. Should the judge grant a continuance, (s)he must complete each section of the log to include the date the hearing was continued, the name of the judge granting the continuance, the reason for continuance and the next hearing date if one has been established;
   
   
3. The file shall be returned to the Clerk of Court for rescheduling, as appropriate.

The continuance log is designed to provide an easily accessible history of continuances granted for each case. Each judge assigned to the case should be mindful and consider the number of prior continuances when determining if a continuance is appropriate.
Information contained within the continuance log is considered internal work product of the family court, and therefore, not available for public inspection or dissemination.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Columbia, South Carolina
May 20, 2019