Category: News

In a newly released report, Hybrid Hearings Improvement Initiative, NCSC, shares examples of how courts expanded pre-pandemic virtual and hybrid proceedings or quickly adopted new technology and practices to accommodate new ways of doing business. The report notes that courts are now using remote and hybrid hearings throughout all 50 states in differing degrees for both civil and criminal case types. By definition, a hybrid hearing is one in which at least one participant is attending from the courtroom using the room’s audio/video infrastructure and at least one participant is attending remotely either via videoconferencing platform or phone, using audio, video, or both.

“The Hybrid Hearings Improvement Initiative was a natural extension of NCSC’s work during the pandemic,” said Lindsay Hafford, NCSC project director and principal court management consultant. “Connecting technology partners directly with courts provided an invaluable exchange for all participants as they worked toward the common goal of system improvement.”

The initiative reached courts in 28 states, two territories, and one tribal jurisdiction. The five technology partners — Cisco, Logitech, Speech 2 Data, televic, and Zoom for Government — supported the project with hardware, software, funding, and training.

The report features examples from 14 courts that demonstrate how funding; technology; facilities; staffing; and processes, procedures, and policies are all key to hybrid hearings’ success. Additionally, NCSC offers related resources, strategies, best practices, and guidance for successful virtual and hybrid hearings.

For more information and to read the full report, please visit: Hybrid Hearings Improvement Initiative | NCSC.

SJI has just released the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request. To read more, download now:

Establishing robust youth defense systems ensures that youth defenders have the right resources to fulfill the constitutional promise of counsel and in so doing, fight for a transformed system under a collective vision of freeing all youth from systemic injustices. 

The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) is pleased to announce new Gavel to Gavel resource, which tracks state-by-state legislative activity with potential impact on state courts. In 2024, they are focusing primarily on monitoring proposed legislation related to judicial selection and to cyber and physical security of state courts. An “other” category collects other notable proposed legislation beyond these two focus categories. To read the full article and to access, please visit: Gavel to Gavel | NCSC.

IAALS, the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver, and The Chicago Bar Foundation (CBF) are excited to partner on this critically urgent project. An important addition to the national access to justice landscape, the Above the Line Network (ATLN) has just launched to tackle the daunting challenges that middle-class Americans face when seeking legal help that doesn’t break the bank. While most organized access to justice efforts rightly focus on low-income and poor people who are especially vulnerable, we can never achieve our nation’s ideal of equal justice for all when middle-class people—who make up more than 50% of the nation’s population— and small businesses struggle to find quality, affordable legal services. They are “above the line” of income eligibility for the free legal aid reserved for the poorest Americans, but they also struggle to find quality and affordable legal services in the current legal market.

The project advances the CBF’s work in helping legal consumers in the middle class connect with affordable and accessible quality legal services—including through its legal incubator program, the Justice Entrepreneurs Project—and the work of IAALS in helping the legal profession evolve to put client and consumer needs first and enable people of all socioeconomic backgrounds to find the legal help they need.

With a specific focus on the legal needs of the vastly overlooked middle class, ATLN is a new, organized network of individuals and organizations across the country and in Canada that are committed to improving access for the middle-market—a collaborative and supportive community where ideas, resources, and best practices can be shared, further developed, and scaled to reach more people who need affordable legal services.

“With the majority of Americans being left behind, a more concerted national effort is needed to address this distinct access gap, and ATLN aims to do just that,” said Jessica Bednarz, IAALS Director of Legal Services and the Profession. “To do so, we don’t necessarily need to reinvent the wheel. Most of the pieces are there, and what we’re doing is bringing them together, thoughtfully and carefully, and ensuring that it rolls in the right direction—faster, more effectively, and finally getting the middle class where they need to go.”

ATLN intends to pull the many pieces together as a full ecosystem of middle-class legal providers and models for serving these clients. While there are some promising programs and models tackling this problem around the United States, Canada, and beyond, there is not a coordinated effort among them. ATLN will change that, uniting these existing efforts together—from incubators, socially conscious private law firms, nonprofit law firms, legal aid programs, and other organizations—to help them grow, thrive, and replicate, and foster advocacy for the middle class in the larger access to justice circles.

Visit the Above the Line Network project page here: Above the Line Network | IAALS (du.edu)

An estimated 14.4% of Americans are summoned for jury duty, and approximately 11 million individuals report for jury service every year. In their new policy paper, Citizens on Call: Responding to the Needs of 21st Century Jurors, the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) reinforces the importance of jury service by issuing a call to action and urging courts to improve the treatment of jurors.

“COSCA chose this topic because more than 25 years of research by NCSC and others has shown us the value of diversity in juries, the long-term effects of some jury service, and the myriad of reasons why individuals actively avoid jury service,” said Sally Holewa, North Dakota state court administrator and chair of COSCA’s policy committee. “Addressing these issues is well within the reach of court systems. Too often, we treat juries like the nameless panels depicted by sketch artists.”

The paper examines the reasons for juror dissatisfaction and identifies solutions and strategies for courts to address them. Additionally, COSCA outlines steps courts can take to ensure that jurors are treated with respect and appreciation throughout the entire process, starting from the initial contact until the verdict is rendered and beyond.

“It is time for courts to recognize the inherent humanity of those individuals who collectively make up our juries to ensure that the courts are welcoming the service of all individuals while mitigating any harm jury service causes them,” Holewa added.

Ten recommendations and multiple strategies offered in the paper take into consideration a juror’s time, financial circumstances, and the continued stress that may result from performing jury services.

COSCA identifies four causes of juror stress:

• Uncertainty, lack of control and long wait times
• The cost of jury service
• Privacy concerns and fears about personal and family safety
• Post-trial anxiety, guilt and vicarious trauma

COSCA encourages courts to think critically about how to improve the juror experience and offers the following recommendations:

• Ensure that the number of jurors asked to report is based on actual need.
• Shorten the length of jury service.
• Advocate for adequate payment for jury service.
• Educate trial court judges on vicarious trauma in jurors.
• Implement a juror trauma program.
• Address juror safety concerns.
• Protect juror privacy.

For more information on this paper and others, visit the COSCA website.

Chatbots can be an effective tool for improving access to services and efficiency in court operations. In NCSC’s new guide, Court Chatbots: How to Build a Great Chatbot for Your Court’s Website, our team explains how this computer software works and explores ways courts can use them to expand access. 

“We know chatbots can provide great benefits to both the public and the court. However, we want to encourage courts to plan well and adequately support chatbots to ensure they are effective,” said NCSC Court Management Consultant Aubrie Souza, lead author of the new guide.

Today, you can find chatbots helping court users in Arizona, Los Angeles, and Miami answer frequently asked questions and provide information about navigating the court website and finding resources. Users interact with the chatbots via a menu or free text. In some cases, chatbots communicate with users in multiple languages.

The guide breaks down chatbot basics and identifies key areas to address when considering a solution for your court. It also covers important topics such as distinguishing between providing legal advice and legal information (Tiny Chat 26) and addressing digital divide concerns (Tiny Chat 4). The guide emphasizes that while a chatbot can help lessen the workload caused by phone calls, emails, live chats, and in-person visitors, it should supplement, not replace, staff.

Recommendations for building a good chatbot include:

• Secure a vendor contract that addresses responsibilities such as maintenance, updates, security, data ownership and troubleshooting.

• Pay close attention to how the chatbot will appear on your website and the expectations it sets for users.
• Make the chatbot accessible by using plain language and text, colors and cues that can be recognized by users with visual impairments, and screen readers.
• Provide users with transcripts and instructions on how to contact the court or an external resource if needed.
• Recruit real users to test the chatbot prior to launch.

The Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) and Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) have created a Rapid Response Team (RRT) of chief justices and state court administrators to examine some of the immediate issues related to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI in courts.

“The growing reliance on AI tools in the legal practice and court proceedings offers opportunities and challenges,” said CCJ President and RRT Co-Chair Anna Blackburne-Rigsby, Chief Judge of the DC Court of Appeals. “I am pleased that this team will begin work soon to assist courts in understanding the current implications of AI’s evolution on the state courts and create model guardrails to protect the integrity of the judicial process.”

RRT Co-Chair Justin Forkner, Chief Administrative Officer of the Indiana Supreme Court, added, “Our shared understanding of these technologies will help us develop model rules for state courts with respect to disclosure, transparency, accuracy, authenticity, and certification of AI use in court pleading and proceedings.”

Supported by NCSC staff, this team will collect and analyze court orders, rules, best practices, and other actions of the state court community related to attorneys and self-represented litigants’ use of AI tools to construct legal pleadings.

Read more here: Response team will assist courts with AI policy and practice | NCSC

SJI received 10 grant applications requesting a total of $1,231,514 for the 1^st quarter of FY 2024. The Board met on December 4, 2023, at SJI Headquarters to make decisions on those applications.

During its meeting, the Board awarded one (1) Strategic Initiatives Grant to the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), in partnership with the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators to conduct five regional online and in-person summits, where court leaders will gain a deeper understanding of cybersecurity and technical disaster recovery resources and tools, enabling them to prevent, respond to, and recover from cybersecurity events. 

One (1) Project Grant application was awarded to the National Association for Court Management (NACM) to: 1) develop and deliver nationally significant educational programs, related materials, and curriculum with a continued focus on SJI Priority Investment Areas and the NACM Core©; and 2) continue distant learning opportunities to broaden the scope and delivery of educational content to court managers, judges, administrators, and other judicial branch employees. 

Five (5) Technical Assistance Grant applications were awarded: 1) the Kansas Supreme Court to conduct an organizational assessment of the staffing structure of the Office of Judicial Administration and district court administrators statewide; 2) the NCSC to develop a free, online self-study resource that will educate court staff about the role of courts in American society, and how court staff help fulfill the mission of courts; 3) the Superior Court of Mohave County, Arizona, to conduct a workload assessment of judicial officers; 4) the Alaska Court System to identify the most effective governance model that will result in a cohesive, responsive, efficient, and data-informed administrative system for trial court operations; and 5) the Wyoming Judicial Branch to implement a mental health diversion project with the immediate goal of launching a pilot in Campbell County, and a long-term goal statewide implementation.

Two (2) Curriculum Adaptation and Training Grants were awarded: 1) support to the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) to develop an advanced domestic violence educational session and toolkit for judges and other court personnel attending the NAWJ meetings; and 2) the Wisconsin Office of Judicial Education to provide a faculty development training program for judicial officers and other court personnel identified as potential future in-house faculty for educational programming in the state.