On Tuesday, July 21, the Guilford County Clerk of Courts Office announced that some services in the county courthouse in downtown Greensboro will be temporarily suspended after workers in the building tested positive for COVID-19.
The press release from the Guilford County Clerk of Courts office states that court workers have been doing what they can to keep things running in the county’s two courthouses.
“During the pandemic,” the July 21 press release reads, “the Clerk of Courts office has worked diligently to provide essential services which are necessary to ensure that the court system can work smoothly.”
That office is responsible for recordkeeping and document processing for court cases and filings.
Despite those efforts, the coronavirus has shown up among courthouse staff and, as a result, there have been a number of operational changes. Here are some:
- The public counters in the courthouse for many court services will be closed Wednesday, July 22 and Thursday, July, 23.
- Only courts that are “necessary” for due process of law – or that are otherwise deemed necessary – will be held on July 22 and July, 23. All other courts are suspended for July 22 and July 23. All courts will resume on Friday, July 24 unless other current plans change.
- Bookkeeping, Civil Judgments, Juvenile, Estates and Special Proceedings of the Clerk of Courts Office will remain open this week.
There will be no changes to court services in the courthouse in High Point.
Guilford County Clerk of Superior Court Lisa Johnson-Tonkins stated in the press release that multiple actions are being taken to resolve the issue.
“We have been preparing for this potential situation since the pandemic started,” she said. “The Courthouse has implemented several protocols to help keep our employees and the public safe. When we are notified of positive cases amongst our staff, we work closely with the County Public Health Department to assess the exposure risks and take immediate actions.”
Tonkins added that the current plan includes temporarily closing affected areas for cleaning, as well as additional testing for courthouse employees when that testing is deemed appropriate by local health officials.
