It might seem a bit odd, having to spend more money in order to make Maine’s courts more efficient. But a state task force’s proposal to streamline the court system is well worth the $400,000 investment — to bring better semblance of order to the state’s court rules, and to limit the bogging down of cases that can take place under the current system.

The task force, created by the Legislature and headed by Vincent McKusick, former chief justice of the Maine Supreme Court, has proposed significantly changing the roles of the state’s Superior and District courts. Currently, Maine’s Superior Courts review most District Court rulings. The task force proposes almost all appeals of District Court cases instead go before the Supreme Court directly, removing a significant burden on the Superior Court.

The task force also proposes to relegate almost all divorces to the District Courts — where, given the preponderance of those cases, they can be dealt with most quickly and efficiently. It would allow civil cases to be removed from District Court to Superior Court only to allow for jury trials, and equalizing the role of the Superior and District Courts in trying civil cases.

The proposed changes make a great deal of sense and rightly have earned the strong support of current Chief Justice Daniel Wathen.

Under current rules, almost all civil cases of consequence — those regarding matters of more than a few thousand dollars — are tried at the Superior Court level. And it’s too easy to get a divorce heard in Superior Court, where the number of opportunities for foot-dragging and harassing legal maneuvers are increased by the nature of the difference between Superior and District court rules.

Normally, one would object to lessening the number of ways a case can be tried and the avenues of appeal once those cases are complete. However, the task force’s plan does not deprive anyone of the rights to trial they effectively enjoy today, nor does it remove from them the right to have an appeal heard. Instead, it fairly limits the amount of work the courts have to do, effectively giving Mainers a considerably better court system for about $400,000 annually — the cost of additional lawyers, clerks and secretaries for the Supreme and District courts to handle the increased work loads they would face.

That’s a wise investment, especially since Mainers don’t seem to be getting any less litigious as time goes by.