During the September 9, 2013 meeting, the Board awarded a Strategic Initiatives Grant (SIG) to the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), in partnership with the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System (IAALS) to support the Civil Justice Initiative. At its 2013 Midyear Meeting, the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) passed a resolution calling for the creation of a Civil Justice Initiative to address the impact of excessive costs and delays in civil litigation on access to justice, public trust and confidence in the courts, and the constitutional role of the courts. The project will develop guidelines and best practices for civil litigation based on best practices in various states, and other applicable information. The project will focus on a wide variety of issues such as civil case processing including variations for pleading standards, discovery procedures, summary judgment and other dispositive motions, business court programs, and managing mass tort litigation. The project will result in: 1) a written report presented to CCJ summarizing the project’s findings and recommendations including evidence-based practices, best practices, and templates for civil rules and operational practices for CCJ members to consider adopting in their respective states; and 2) a series of briefing papers on the current landscape of civil litigation in state courts and other issues addressed by the project.

Each fiscal year, SJI allocates significant financial resources to support its Priority Investment Areas. In FY 2014, the Priority Investment Areas will be (in no ranking order): 1) Language Access and the State Courts; 2) Self-Represented Litigation; 3) Reengineering in Response to Budget Reductions; 4) Human Trafficking and the State Courts; 5) Immigration Issues in the State Courts; 6) Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Elder Issues; and 7) a new Priority Investment Area on Remote Technology – e.g., innovative use of technology to improve the business operations of courts and provide enhanced services outside the courtroom (videoconferencing, online access, educational services, remote court proceedings, the electronic record, centralization/regionalization of court services, etc.).

The state courts have been increasing their use of technology to enhance services, become more efficient, and reduce costs. However, much of this work has been fragmented across and within states, and often depends on various factors such as awareness of how remote technology can be harnessed to improve the delivery of court services and/or willingness to embrace new technologies. Technological advancements such as the electronic record, digital recording, and videoconferencing require courts to not only reassess current business processes, but also create new rules and procedures that support access outside the traditional courthouse/courtroom context.

SJI is interested in innovative approaches to promoting awareness of the ease and benefits of embracing remote technology to improve access to justice, enhance court operations, and reduce costs. Please note that SJI will not support the operational costs associated with the development or enhancement of case management and electronic record systems, in addition to any other equipment costs that support these systems.

The SJI-funded Human Trafficking and the State Courts Collaborative recently released a new website that will serve as a portal for all the TA work, education/training, and resources associated with this project. Each member of the Collaborative will provide updates on their activities using the website, providing a centralized location for all the information available on this critical issue.

Beginning in FY 2013, SJI supported a Strategic Initiatives Grant (SIG) to the Center for Public Policy Studies/The National Judicial College/Center for Court Innovation (CPPS/NJC/CCI) to form a Human Trafficking and the State Courts Collaborative focused on 4 strategic priorities: 1) increasing understanding and awareness about the challenges faced by state courts in dealing with cases involving trafficking victims and their families, and traffickers; 2) developing and testing state and local approaches for assessing and addressing the impact of human trafficking victims and defendants in the state courts; 3) enhancing state and local court capacity to improve court services affected by human trafficking-related case processing demands; and 4) building effective national, state, and local partnerships for addressing the impacts of human trafficking case processing in the state courts.

The Collaborative will result in a variety of products benefiting the state courts, including:

• A comprehensive resource inventory of background information about the demographics, scope, dynamics, and implications for the courts and justice system of various forms of human trafficking;
• Measurement framework that includes measures and tools for monitoring the impacts of human trafficking case processing in the state courts;
• Summary of changes in federal and state trafficking law, policy, and practice that might better serve the interests of the state courts;
• A human trafficking and the state courts web-based resource network and clearinghouse for judges and court personnel;
• A best practices toolkit for jurisdictions interested in establishing a specialized prostitution/trafficking court;
• A series of bench cards targeting human trafficking-related issues;
• Best practice guidelines;
• Model planning and technical assistance process and supporting materials;
• Training on human trafficking via 12 courses for judges;
• Intensive technical assistance in six jurisdictions, and proven nationally applicable technical assistance approaches; and
• Published articles in various court periodicals about the project and the issue in general.

In April 2013, theNational Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) and Legal Momentum/National Judicial Education Program (NJEP) officially joined the Collaborative. NAWJ has made human trafficking a priority over the past 2 years, and with SJI support, has been able to offer educational programming to their membership on this critical issue. With a recent SJI grant (SJI-13-E-090), NJEP will add a module on human trafficking to it popular course, Intimate Partner Sexual Abuse: Adjudicating This Hidden Dimension of Domestic Violence Cases. This web course has proved to be highly successful, and is available free of charge at www.njep-ipsacourse.org.

During the Annual Meeting of the Conference of Chief Justices/Conference of State Court Administrators (CCJ/COSCA), the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) released National Call to Action, Access to Justice for Limited English Proficient Litigants: Creating Solutions to Language Barriers in State Courts. The Call to Action represents the culmination of a multi-year SJI-funded project aimed at addressing limited English proficiency in the state courts, which included a National Summit on Language Access in the Courts held in 2012. The Call to Action presents an overview of important data the NCSC collected during the assessment of the courts, which was conducted prior to the convening of the Summit. It also provides a summary of the Summit, in addition to action steps that state courts can use to implement or improve language access programs.

In addition to the Call to Action, SJI has provided support to the NCSC’s newly established Language Access Services Section to provide direct technical assistance to the state courts on this critical issue. Specifically, NCSC will:

• Assist states through COSCA, CCJ, and the Language Access Advisory Committee (LAAC) in developing consistent national standards for increased ability to share resources, including the ability to share interpreters, tests, and training opportunities;
• Assist in the creation of regional and/or national databases of interpreter resources, and increase capacity through remote interpreting;
• Conduct state and local courts needs assessments;
• Assist state and local courts with developing LEP plans, including assistance in determining when interpreter resources are required, and the necessary resources, as a part of case management;
• Develop model training for judges and court staff on cultural and interpreter use issues;
• Develop instructions and bench cards for judges to explain to courtroom participants how interpreters are best used in the courtroom;
• Evaluate gaps with meeting DOJ guidelines, and establish a plan of action to address those gaps; and,
• Similar to what courts have done with Americans with Disabilities (ADA) issues and security threats, establish a clearinghouse to collect data on LEP complaints in order to assist courts in addressing these issues.

On July 20, 2013, the House Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS) Appropriations Subcommittee marked up the FY 2014 CJS Bill, which included $4,799,000 for SJI. The full House Appropriations Committee approved the Bill on July 17th. On July 16th, the Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee marked up the Bill, including the requested $5,121,000. The full Senate Appropriations Committee approved the Bill on July 18th. SJI greatly appreciates the support from the House and Senate CJS Subcommittees and their staff. SJI will continue to provide updates on the FY 2014 Appropriations Process in future editions of the E-SJI News.

The Executive Session for State Court Leaders in the 21st Century has released two new papers in the series. Executive Session participants, in coordination with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) have been publishing an ongoing series of papers that explore, through in-depth analysis, a policy or operational issue critical to effective state court leadership.

The latest papers, Governance: The Final Frontier, by NCSC President Mary McQueen, and, Maintaining Institutional Independence: Funding Sustainable State Courts During Economic Crisis, by former Oregon Chief Justice Paul De Muniz are now available. These two new papers, in addition to the full catalog, are available online.

The SJI Board of Directors met at the Supreme Court of Connecticut on June 24, 2013, to consider grant applications for the 3rd quarter of FY 2013. A total of 13 grants were awarded during this meeting. One Project Grant was awarded to the Supreme Court of Ohio to for a statewide initiative that will provide a forum for domestic relations judges and their justice system partners to assess protocols, examine resources, and share promising practices.

A total of nine (9) Technical Assistance (TA) Grants were awarded, including grants to: the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) to test and evaluate approaches used in three states to adjudicate domestic relations cases in order to develop a triage system for these case types; the Missouri Office of the State Courts Administrator for a forms and self-represented litigant website six-language translation project; Okanogan County, Washington, to assess the performance of the Office of the Clerk; the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) to develop a training program for judicial officers on human trafficking and increase outreach on this critical topic area; the Henderson Municipal Court in Nevada to conduct an operational review and recommend best practices to improve court administration; the Eugene Municipal Court in Oregon to assess caseflow management; the Oregon Judicial Department for a pilot project designed to improve language access in Oregon’s courts; the Idaho Supreme Court and Judicial Council for a statewide judicial performance evaluation; and, the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts to develop and implement a statewide caseload data evaluation for adult and juvenile probation and pretrial services caseloads.

Three (3) Curriculum Adaptation & Training (CAT) Grants were also awarded including grants to: the National Judicial College (NJC) to develop an advanced skills curriculum for state appellate judges; the Connecticut Judicial Branch to implement a training program for court staff and judges that better identifies and serves individuals with hidden disabilities; and, the Superior Court of Fresno County, California, to deliver a situational leadership training program to 50 current and future court leaders.

The deadline for FY 2013 4th quarter grant applications is Thursday, August 1, 2013. Consultation with SJI staff prior to, and during the preparation of, grant applications is strongly encouraged.

In FY 2012, SJI awarded 6 Strategic Initiatives Grants (SIGs) totaling $275,158 addressing one of SJI’s Priority Investment Areas: Self-Represented Litigation and the State Courts. SIG grants were made to the: 1) Judicial Council of California to train bilingual JusticeCorps volunteers to provide enhanced services for self-represented litigants (SRLs); 2)Indiana Administrative Office of the Courts to train volunteer college and law students to serve statewide pro se clinic clients; 3) the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) to develop a standard set of definitions and counting rules for cases involving one or more SRLs; 4) the Self-Represented Litigation Network (SRLN) and the NCSC to develop formal case triage protocols for assistance to SRLs; 5) the SRLN to facilitate state court reimbursement under Title IV-D, and promote awareness of this resource; and 6) the South Carolina Access to Justice Commission for delivery of legal information to SRLs in underserved areas of South Carolina.

The Judicial Council of California, Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) has, through its Court Interpreter Program, made significant strides towards developing and implementing a statewide training program that will allow 40 bilingual Justice Corps members to learn how to direct SRLs to self-help resources . In addition to an in-person training curriculum being finalized, the AOC will deploy an online training module this month.

The NCSC and SRLN continue to assist the state courts in updating court websites and downloadable materials that can be easily accessed by SRLs. The NCSC is also developing a set of standardized definitions and counting rules for pro se cases. This report and accompanying resources is expected to be available in early January 2014.

SJI will continue to provide updates on these projects.

The Board met on April 8, 2013, to make decisions on FY 2013, 2nd quarter grant applications. A total of 14 grants were awarded during this meeting. One Project Grant was awarded to the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) to develop and pilot specialized jury instructions on implicit bias. Led by the NCSC and Project Implicit, this grant will support the drafting of model jury instructions on implicit bias, pilot their effectiveness using a mock jury, and disseminate the research findings to state court judges.

A total of eight (8) Technical Assistance (TA) Grants were approved, including grants to: Volusia County, Florida, Clerk of the Circuit Court to conduct an e-courtroom assessment and redesign in preparation for statewide e-filing; Massachusetts Trial Court Administrative Office of the Court (AOC) to further statewide language access improvement efforts by developing a model courthouse; New Mexico AOC to continue ensuring language access in the courts by continued delivery of training to judicial employees; 20th Circuit Court of Ottawa County, Michigan, to develop statewide juvenile justice system data sharing capabilities; Superior Court of the Virgin Islands to conduct strategic planning using the High Performance Court (HPC) Framework; 9th Judicial Circuit Court of Orange County, Florida, to ensure court compliance with Florida law regarding guardians and their LEP wards; and two grants to the NCSC for development of a model virtual courthouse setting with integrated technology, as well as the creation of resource for state courts on responding to courthouse security incidents.

Five (5) Curriculum Adaptation & Training (CAT) Grants were also approved, including grants to: Legal Momentum to enhance their online Intimate Partner Sexual Abuse course; County of York in Pennsylvania to develop a model guardianship training and community education program; Nebraska Judicial Branch Education Division of the AOC for the design and delivery of continuing education to Guardian Ad Litems; Superior Court of the Virgin Islands for judicial training, inclusive of the NCSC’s CourtTools curriculum; and, the National Consortium on Racial and Ethnic Fairness in the Courts (NCREFC), which will develop training on objective (race-neutral) decision-making processes for judicial officers and administrators.

SJI also welcomed National Association for Court Management (NACM) President Pam Harris and President-Elect David Slayton to the meeting. Ms. Harris and Mr. Slayton delivered a briefing on the status of SJI-funded NACM projects, and discussed the upcoming NACM Annual Conference, July 14-18, 2013 in San Antonio, Texas.

Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman of the State of New York and the New York Court of Appeals was officially sworn in by SJI Board Chairman Chief Justice Jim Hannah as a member of the Board of Directors on Sunday, April 7, 2013. Chief Judge Lippman joins ten other Board members appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. By law, the President must appoint six state court judges, one state court administrator, and four members of the public (no more than two of whom may be of the same political party). Chief Judge Lippman has held his current position since 2009. He has spent his entire legal career in the New York state court system, serving for 40 years in a variety of roles, including Chief Administrative Judge of all New York State Courts from 1996 to 2007.