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.