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HAWAII
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The Hawaii judiciary maintains
a wide range of programs to improve the courts, many of which are
conducted in collaboration with the community and enhance public trust and
confidence in the judiciary. An
example is the Judicial Performance Program, one of only 13 judicial
evaluation programs in the nation. By
the end of 1999, all eligible full-time judges were evaluated.
Evaluation results are gathered from confidential surveys submitted
by practicing members of the bar. Chief
Justice Ronald Moon uses the evaluations to provide guidance and counsel
to the judges and meets with each judge to discuss his or her performance.
The Judiciary also releases summarized aggregate evaluation results to
increase public confidence while preserving the anonymity of the
respondents and protecting the independence and integrity of the
Judiciary. Recently, a panel to review evaluation results was
formed as a new initiative. Chief
Justice Moon has launched the Judicial Performance Panel in response to
public discussions, particularly with the media and the Bar Association,
regarding the effectiveness of the Performance Program.
The new initiative addresses critics’ concerns that the current
evaluation process is too secretive and completely “in-house” by
enlisting the services of members of the public knowledgeable in the law,
retired practitioners, and former judges to assist in evaluating results
with individual judges.
Other
initiatives include: Ongoing court improvement
process, Court “Concierge” desk and customer service centers, HAJIS
judicial information system, Web site, Meet Your Judges forums, judicial
articles, columns on the judiciary in the State Bar publication, Lunch and
Learn sessions, Adoption Connection, equality/access initiatives, jury
innovations, public satisfaction surveys, Hawaii Appellate Conference
Program, and a mediation video.
Contact:
Marsha E. Kitagawa, Public Affairs Director, The
Judiciary, State of Hawaii, 417 S. King St., Room 206C, Honolulu, Hawaii
96813-2902, 808/539-4910, Fax: 808/539-4801, http://www.courts.state.hi.us/index.jsp.
Judges in the Classroom:
In Hawaii, students in grades seven to
twelve are introduced to the judicial system by sitting state
court judges. Judges visit schools and teach a three-lesson
mini-course on Hawaii’s Family Court system. Students
are taught the ins and outs of the juvenile system, including:
the meaning of the term “minor,” why minors are treated
differently than adults, what dispositions are available and
appropriate for juveniles, the roles of the prosecutor and
defense attorney, and procedures of a legal hearing. During
the last session, the students participate in a simulated Family
Court hearing, drawing together the separate aspects of the
judicial system into a unified experience.
The “Judges in the Classroom”
program was developed on the assumption that responsible citizens
begin as students who understand legal institutions and the
justifications for the law. Such understanding is likely to
lead to an expanded appreciation of the justice system, a
heightened ability to predict consequences of unlawful acts, and
a greater ability to resolve disputes independent of the court
system.
The King Kamehameha V – Judiciary
History Center of Hawai’i, developed this program, basing it
on a similar program in Washington State (see http://www.courts.wa.gov/education/).
Contact:
(808) 539-4994, jhc@aloha.net
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IDAHO
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Building public trust through a multi-disciplinary,
collaborative approach to cases involving children and families, the Idaho
Supreme Court convened a Summit on Children and Families in June 2000.
The purpose was to review current Idaho court practices and develop
a coordinated strategic plan to improve the handling of cases involving
children and families. Summit participants were from a variety of disciplines
including prosecutors, public defenders, trial court administrators, Dept.
of Health and Welfare, Dept. of Juvenile Corrections, juvenile probation,
domestic violence evaluators, mental health, educators, and many more. Summit presentations included: an overview of court practice involving children & families, trends,
Family Resolutions: A multi-family group for high conflict couples,
restorative justice, community justice approach to domestic violence,
family drug court, and alternative dispute resolution in child protection
cases.
Contact:
Patti Tobias, Administrative Director of the Courts, Idaho Supreme
Court, P.O. Box 83720, Boise, ID 83720-0101,
208/334-2246, Fax: 208/334-2146
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ILLINOIS
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Illinois Judicial Speakers
Bureau
The Supreme Court of Illinois, in
collaboration with the Illinois Judges Association, developed the Illinois
Judicial Speakers Bureau as a tool to better educate Illinoisans about the
myriad of roles the judiciary plays in everyday life. While judges have
been speaking before various community groups for over 30 years, this
collaborative effort serves as a pro-active vehicle to better inform
citizens about the judiciary. Judges speak on a range of topics from jury
duty to the role of a judge in the judicial process.
Special Supreme Court Committee
on Capital Cases
In April 1999, the Supreme Court of
Illinois established a special committee to assess the death penalty in
the state. The Special Supreme Court Committee on Capital Cases is
composed of 17 experienced trial judges, including one Appellate Judge,
from around the state. The committee was among the first to study the
death penalty process in the state and issued its findings and
recommendations in an initial report in October, 1999. The committee,
after two days of public hearings held in Chicago and Springfield in
January, 2000, modified some of its original proposals and forwarded a
final report in November, 2000 to the Illinois Supreme Court. The Court
officially filed the new rules, based on recommendations from the
committee which was designed to better ensure fairness and justice in the
death penalty process on March 1, 2001.
Contact: Joseph R.
Tybor, Press Secretary, Supreme
Court of Illinois, 222 N. LaSalle Street, 13th
Floor, Chicago, IL 60601, 312/793-2323 FAX 312/793-0871.
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INDIANA
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The Supreme
Court worked to create greater access to justice through improvements in
technology, encouraging attorneys to perform pro
bono work, promoting greater diversity in the profession, and by
attempting to improve the experience of citizens who serve on juries.
Internet:
In 2000, the Supreme Court began a major overhaul of its Web site in order
to make it more user friendly and to provide greater information to the
public. It will include
published opinions, a listing of all attorneys, and updated docket
information. The Supreme Court also directed an effort to provide email
and Internet access to every elected judge and court clerk in the state. As a result of a successful “webcast” of an oral argument
viewed by over 1,500 people, the Supreme Court is pursuing an effort to
webcast all of its oral arguments. In addition, a list of trained
mediators that includes their location, and biographies has been posted on
the Internet.
Pro
bono,
Pro se and Civil Legal Aid: In late 2000 the Indiana Pro
bono Commission, a committee appointed by the Supreme Court and the
Bar Foundation, reviewed plans to promote pro
bono work for indigent civil litigants in the state’s 14 judicial
districts. In January 2001,
the Commission awarded over $300,000 in grants to the 14 districts to fund
their pro bono plans. In some counties, two-thirds of the attorneys agreed
to take cases on a pro bono
basis. During 2000, the Court received a $50,000 grant from the State
Justice Institute to staff a statewide pro
se office to give citizens better access to the legal system.
A committee of trial court judges, county clerks, legal services
representatives, and law school faculty was appointed in early 2001 and
will begin planning its long-term strategy. Since 1997, the Supreme
Court’s Division of State Court Administration has been responsible for
administering a state fund for legal assistance to indigent persons in
civil cases. In 1999-2000,
the Division made distributions, totaling one million dollars, to
eleven organizations providing civil legal aid services to Indiana’s
poor.
Diversity:
Through the Supreme Court-sponsored Indiana Conference on Legal Education
Opportunity (ICLEO), a more diverse legal profession is being created.
Established in 1997 and patterned after the national CLEO program, ICLEO
provides $5,000 annual stipends to Indiana law school students who are
educationally disadvantaged, members of a minority or have low incomes.
The program also sponsors a 6-week preparatory course during the summer
before law school starts to introduce the students to the rigors of law
school. Career counseling,
employment opportunities, and bar examination preparation are just a few
of the services offered by ICLEO. Three
graduates were selected to speak at their school’s graduation
ceremonies. In 2000, the first ICLEO graduates passed the Indiana Bar
Examination. The Supreme Court is also seeking to make sure that people,
regardless of race or gender, feel that the justice system operates
fairly. In late 1999, the
Supreme Court created by court rule, the Race and Gender Fairness
Commission. Myra Selby of Indianapolis chairs the 25-member commission.
A former Supreme Court justice, Ms. Selby was the first woman and
first African-American to serve on the Indiana Supreme Court.
Judicial, business, and community leaders are all represented on
the Commission.
Family
Courts:
In an effort to encourage innovative ways to help families
facing multiple legal programs negotiate the legal system, the Supreme
Court authorized three pilot family court projects which went into
operation during 2000. In one county, a case manager directs all of a
family’s cases to one magistrate. In another, by developing new
procedural rules and making broader use of judicial notice, the court
consolidates a single family’s cases. In the third county, a case
manager makes sure that each judge is aware of all the cases involving a
single family. The three counties are sharing $150,000.
“Parenting Time” Guidelines:
The Domestic Relations Committee of the Judicial Conference developed a
uniform set of guidelines for what used to be called “visitation
guidelines.” The new
guidelines are based on the premise that it is usually in the child’s
best interest to have frequent, meaningful, and continuing contact with
each parent. They also represent the least amount of time a parent should
have to maintain such contact with a child and acknowledge that scheduling
times requires persistent effort and communication to promote the best
interest of the child.
Court
Improvement:
The Supreme Court, through its Court Improvement
Executive Committee and with the benefit of federal funds, continued a
Court Improvement Project to promote and fund projects improving services
in cases involving abused and neglected children.
Although the purpose and overall framework of the project are set
by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the American Bar
Association’s Center on Children and the Law, the direction and breadth
of issues addressed by the Indiana program have been guided by the Supreme
Court and the members of an executive committee. In the second phase, 18
county programs aimed at expediting CHINS cases were funded. Funds were
awarded to five county proposals focused on comprehensive improvements for
delivery of services in children’s cases.
The Indiana Court Improvement Project sponsored an
interdisciplinary conference “A Collaborative Approach to Permanency”
in June 2000 in Columbus, Indiana. Of
the 224 conferees, 106 were judicial officers, 57 were child welfare
directors and case managers, and 61 were attorneys who represent the
Division of Family and Children. In
addition to a plenary session overview of the federal adoption and safe
families act, six concurrent sessions were offered regarding case flow,
permanency planning, adoption issues, and mediation.
Juries:
Under the guidance of the Court-appointed Citizens Commission for the
Future of Indiana Courts, an extensive two and one-half year examination
of the jury system was undertaken in cooperation with the Judicial
Administration Committee. The
focus was on how Indiana recruits, treats, and empowers its juries and
included a number of professional surveys and a statewide conference.
A number of changes and reforms were presented to the Supreme
Court’s Rules and Procedures Committee and distributed to Indiana
attorneys for comment in early 2001.
Guardian
Ad litem Court Appointed
Special Advocate:
In 1989, the Indiana General Assembly established an
office of Guardian Ad litem and
Court Appointed Special Advocate services to be administered through the
Supreme Court’s Division of State Court Administration. Counties are
encouraged to provide appropriate GAL/CASA services by receiving matching
state funding disbursed on a statutory formula.
In addition, the state office provides training and support
services for local GAL/CASA programs.
The state office also sought and secured a grant from the National
CASA Association. The grant has enabled the state office to offer
additional services to communities that do not yet have active CASA
programs, to assist programs that are in existence but may be floundering,
and to provide enhanced support services to thriving programs.
Funding from the grant has made it possible to publish a quarterly
newsletter and conduct quarterly regional training for program directors
this past year.
Protective Orders:
The Supreme Court appointed a committee of trial judges to review the
protective order process in Indiana in 2000 and, in connection with
Violence Against Women Act training, hosted a seven-state regional
workshop designed to make sure that protective orders were enforced
properly across state and tribal boundaries.
Contact: David Remondini, Counsel to the Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Indiana, 304 State House, Indianapolis, IN
46204, 317-232-2550, Fax: 317-232-8372, dremondi@courts.state.in.us.
In
2001 the Indiana State Bar Association plans to conduct two public forums
on the justice system for community leaders, private citizens, judges, and
lawyers to discuss both perceptions and realities. It is also cooperating
with the Indiana Justice Center in efforts to develop a comprehensive,
integrated delivery system to ensure access to justice for low-income
people. These cooperative efforts involve all the legal services organizations in the state. A February 2001 Access to Justice Conference
provided a forum for bar members and legal services providers to discuss and organize pro bono
efforts in response to the Indiana Supreme Court’s new rule of Professional Conduct concerning pro
bono. The ISBA Committee on the Civil Rights of Children, in
partnership with the state Attorney General and Department of Education,
continues to offer conflict resolution and peer mediation training to the
schools. Since 1994, 130 schools have participated.
Contact:
Tom Pyrz, Executive Director, Indiana State Bar
Association, 230 E. Ohio St., 40th Floor, Indianapolis, IN
46204-2199, 317/639-5465, Fax: 317/266-2588, pyrzt@inbar.org.
Courts in the Classroom: Many states use the Internet as a means of
distributing traditional educational materials. The Indiana
Supreme Court is an early adopter in using the web itself as part
of the curriculum. Indiana offers
webcasts, with case
summaries, of all oral arguments before the Supreme Court and for
selected cases before the Court of Appeals and Tax Court. Indiana
enhances its broad webcasting activities through its focused
“Featured Cases” program. The “Featured
Cases” program couples innovative webcasting with
comprehensive legal and educational materials. “Featured
Cases” are selected for educational content and student
interest. Materials accompanying featured webcasts include:
case summary, briefs of petition and reply, associated lesson
plans, and case dispositions. Students are thus instructed
on judicial process and fundamental legal concepts through the
web. Recent “Featured Cases” have focused on
interesting and critical legal concepts like: due process, right
to trial by jury, construction of legal arguments, statutes of
limitations, and medical malpractice. Upcoming units are
expected to focus on gun ownership, freedom of speech, and
defamation. http://www.in.gov/judiciary/education/
Contact:
Elizabeth Osborn,
eosborn@courts.state.in.us,
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IOWA
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By shaping the quality of justice through its case law,
and through its priorities and actions as the leadership council that
administers the state court system, the Supreme Court effects public --
and attorneys’ -- trust and confidence in the justice system. During its
third annual “planning retreat” in July 2000, the Supreme Court
identified eight priorities for the coming fiscal year and sketched
general strategies for addressing them. All of these initiatives directly
or indirectly influence and/or involve attorneys in some way. They are:
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Effectively respond to the $2.4 million
shortfall in the judicial branch operations budget
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Test electronic filing in two counties and the
appellate courts
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Advance courthouse security improvements
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Improve judgeship distribution formulas
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Ensure high quality language interpretation services in
Iowa’s courts
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Implement an ongoing judicial branch performance
assessment program
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Improve continuing education for staff, magistrates, and
judges
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Improve communication within the judicial
branch
Contact:
John
Goerdt, State Court Planner, Iowa Supreme Court, State Capitol, Des
Moines, IA 50319, 515/242-0193, Fax: 515/281-3043, john.a.goerdt@jb.state.ia.us.
Update:
As of 10/24/03 - The Iowa Judiciary does not have any active Public Trust
and Confidence Committees.
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KANSAS
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The
Kansas Supreme Court continues to train the judiciary on topics related
to community outreach. The court’s statewide 2001 Judges’ Spring Conference
focused on outreach to juveniles and senior citizens.
The Supreme Court works closely with the Kansas Bar Association
and the Department of Education to coordinate law-related education
projects.
Contact:
Ron
Keefover, Education-Information Officer, Office of Judicial
Administration, 301 SW 10th, Topeka, Kansas 66612-1507,
785/296-2256, Fax: 785/296-7076, keefover@kscourts.org,
or Denise
Kilwein, Director of Judicial Education, Kansas Judicial Center,
301
West 10th St., Topeka, KS 66612, 785/296-2256, Fax:
785/296-7076, kilwein@kscourts.org
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KENTUCKY
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During
the 2000 Kentucky Bar Association Annual Convention, a Chief Justice’s
Conference on the Judiciary was held to address the issues of judicial
independence and public trust and confidence in the justice system.
This conference was open to the public and included a keynote
presentation by Chief Justice Thomas Zlaket of the Arizona Supreme Court.
As a follow-up, during the 2001 KBA Annual Convention, Kentucky Chief
Justice Joseph E. Lambert will hold a “Chief Justice’s Jury Summit”
which will include a panel discussion with lawyers, judges, and citizens who
have served as jurors. In addition, Tom Munsterman of the National Center for State
Courts will review reforms now being undertaken in the jury system.
Efforts
are being made at all of Kentucky’s law schools to boost minority
involvement. And, to counteract
the lack of civics in high schools, lawyers will be given two hours of CLE
credit for presentations made in the schools.
Contact:
James
L. Deckard, Chief of Staff and Counsel, Office of the Chief Justice,
502/564-4162, Fax: 502/564-1933, JDeckard@mail.aoc.state.ky.us
Contact:
Bruce
Davis,
Executive Director, Kentucky Bar Association, 514 West Main Street,
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601-1883, 502/564-3795, Fax: 502/564-3225, bdavis@kybar.org.
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LOUISIANA
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The
most significant result of the Supreme Court’s efforts to improve the
public trust and confidence in the Louisiana judiciary has been the
excellent response by state court judges in creating and participating in
activities to improve the court system at the local level.
Planning:
The Louisiana appellate courts, trial courts and the Supreme Court adopted
five-year strategic plans, which began to be implemented in 2000. The
respective court plans are based upon the appellate and trial court
performance standards as revised by the Louisiana Appellate Court and
Trial Courts Performance Standards Commissions and adopted by the
Louisiana Supreme Court in 1997. Input was also provided by the bench,
bar, and non-lawyer community members of the Supreme Court’s 1997-1999
Consumer Research and Service Development Project.
The goals of the plans are: 1) to provide guidance to state courts
for continuous improvement; 2) to serve as tools for public
accountability; and 3) to establish a stronger framework for dialogue
between the judiciary, the executive, and the legislative branches on
budgetary and other needs of the courts and on court performance.
Court
Performance: The first report
on Justice at Work was prepared
and published by the Judicial Administrator’s Office. The report provides a statewide overview of court performance
in 1999. Justice at Work will continue to be an annual publication.
Louisiana
Protective Order Registry: A centralized statewide computer repository,
LPOR collects civil and criminal protective orders, which provide relief
from abuse or harassment by a spouse, intimate partner, or family member.
Judicial
Outreach: The Community Relations Department expanded the CLASS --
Courting Louisiana Students and Schools -- program by coordinating efforts
with the Louisiana State Bar Association’s Center for Law and Civic
Education to reach out to high school social studies and civics teachers.
In the CLASS program, oral arguments are videotaped and copies are
provided to schools throughout the state, accompanied by a handbook for
teachers and curriculum planners. Through an Internet lesson plan, students write their own
opinions and then compare them with the Court’s official decision in the
case.
“Ride-Alongs”
continued to give opinion leaders opportunities for first-hand observation
in the courtroom. In 2000,
for the first time, the program included Supreme Court “Ride-Alongs”
in which nearly 50 legislators participated.
In
conjunction with the Louisiana State Bar Association and the New Orleans
Press Club, the Louisiana Supreme Court co-sponsored a Law School for
Journalists to help the press
who cover the courts become better informed about the judicial system.
Court
Column, the quarterly
newsletter for the Louisiana judiciary continues to highlight the work of
Louisiana courts in the area of community outreach, judicial reform, and
innovations in court management and case processing.
It has a circulation of 5000.
The
statewide Judges Speakers Bureau established by the Louisiana Supreme
Court in 1998, continues to offer presentations by judges in everyday
language on how the judicial system works.
Over 50 judges have volunteered to participate in this bureau.
In
an effort to assist judges in improving legislative-judicial relationships
a Legislative Alert booklet was
produced by the Community Relations Department and Trial Court Services
Department. The Legislative
Alert booklets were customized to provide each judge with information on
legislators representing his or her judicial district.
A booklet was sent to every Louisiana judge prior to the start of
the regular legislative session.
Children
and Families: The Court continues to focus on and improve the justice
system for families and children in the state through programs such as the
Louisiana Court Improvement Program, a federally funded program for
improving the adjudication of child abuse and neglect cases; Families in
Need of Services (FINS) Assistance Program, under which the Judicial
Administrator’s Office manages the funds provided by the legislature to
assist local FINS processes; and the Campaign for the Children, a public
awareness project focused on the problem of foster care drift and
encouraging greater support for foster children.
Contact:
Valerie Willard, Deputy Judicial Administrator-Community Relations,
Louisiana Supreme Court, 504/599-0319, Fax: 504/599-0320, vsw@lajao.org.
Update:
As of 10/24/03 - Louisiana does not currently have a Public Trust and
Confidence Committee in place.
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MAINE
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The
Maine State Bar Association is actively involved in a joint effort with
the court system, Justice Action Group (JAG), the Board of Overseers of
the Bar, and the Maine Bar Foundation to “unbundle” legal services in
order to provide limited representation where appropriate to otherwise
unrepresented litigants through courthouse assistance projects.
This effort requires rules changes and education of the bar and the
public.
Pine
Tree Legal Services, the Bar Foundation, and the court system have
collaborated to create the HelpMeLaw Web site, intended to be a
comprehensive statewide “portal” for low-income Mainers seeking legal
assistance and information of any sort.
It will include an instructional video, interactive pleadings, and
legal primers. Funding for
development of the site comes from a LSC TIG grant.
Domestic
violence assistance (HelpMeLaw Abuse network), funded through a TOP grant,
will use Internet-based technology to create a secure network linking
domestic violence shelters to courtrooms.
Victims of domestic abuse will be able to obtain court-ordered
protection and access to legal services via teleconferencing.
Contact:
Julie
Rowe, Executive Director, Maine State Bar Association, P.O. Box 788,
Augusta, ME 04332-0788,
207/622-7523, Fax: 207/623-0083, jrowe@mainebar.org,
Contact:
James
T. Glessner, State Court Administrator, Administrative Office of the
Courts, 62 Elm St., P.O. Box 4820, Portland, ME
04112, 207/822-0710,
Fax: 207/822-0781, james.t.glessner@state.me.us.
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MARYLAND
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Following
the National Conference on Public Trust and Confidence in the Justice
System, Chief Judge Robert M. Bell and then-state bar president Jim Thompson
discussed how we could make use of what we learned from the conference. We
relied upon the input of Maryland's Committee on Public Trust and Confidence
(PTC) including those members selected to participate in the national
conference.
They
decided to address two initiatives: expedition and timeliness of case
processing, and the perception of racial and ethnic bias. These were
two of the four initiatives arising from the work of the Judiciary's
strategic leadership summit, a group Judge Bell assembled to help the
Judiciary prioritize the goals we have identified over the years. Judge
Bell and Mr. Thompson established a joint committee comprised of Maryland's
representatives at the conference and additional members of the bench and
bar to advise us on how to address the two initiatives selected. This
group continues to meet.
We
have made some progress on both initiatives. Aspirational standards have
been identified for both trial courts to achieve effective caseflow
management. At
the same time, Mr. Thompson appointed a committee of the MSBA to study the
cost of civil litigation. That
report was adopted by the Maryland State Bar Association's Board of
Governors last year.
Further,
the Select Committee on Gender Equality expanded its follow up survey to
include basic questions about perceptions of racial and ethnic bias.
Although our joint committee concluded there was enough statistical and
anecdotal information available now to begin to address the perception
issue, the additional data will be beneficial to our work. It
was with this joint committee's support that Judge Bell appointed the
Commission on Racial and Ethnic Fairness in the Judicial Process.
Currently,
the PTC Implementation Committee is focusing on how to engage the public in
dialogue about issues of importance to our system of justice, and a review
of efforts made by the bench and bar to address judicial campaign efforts. The
first public forum was offered on May 21 in Silver Spring and attracted
about 200 participants, featuring a skit on domestic violence. A
second forum in Montgomery is being planned for October and similar plans
are underway in Baltimore.
The
next meeting of the joint committee will be scheduled soon to consider an
assessment from the subcommittee about efforts in the area of judicial
campaign ethics, and an update on plans for public forums across the State.
Contact:
Sally
W. Rankin, Court Information Officer, Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal
Bldg., 361 Rowe Blvd., Annapolis, MD 21401, 410/260-1488; Fax: 410/974-5291,
sally.rankin@courts.state.md.us.
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