Category Archives: Court Management

How Should We Define the Non-Advocacy Services Provided by Courts and Others — Canda Moves to Expand the Wording

Posted on September 16, 2012 by richardzorza

While there is broad agreement that there should be a clear verbal distinction between he adversarial/advocacy services provided by lawyers, and the neutral services provided by courts and others to assist litigants navigate the system, there is less complete agreement … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Self-Help Services | Comments Off on How Should We Define the Non-Advocacy Services Provided by Courts and Others — Canda Moves to Expand the Wording

Call for Submissions for “Future Trends in State Courts”

Posted on September 14, 2012 by richardzorza

The National Center for State Courts has put out a Call for Submissions for its Future Trends in State Courts publication. This book (which is also available online) is widely read and influential in the court world.  It has often … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management | Comments Off on Call for Submissions for “Future Trends in State Courts”

NCSC Launches New Court Access Center

Posted on August 30, 2012 by richardzorza

Here is the announcement: New Court Access Center The Center on Court Access to Justice for All (Access Center), an initiative of the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), helps judges and courts advance access to justice, especially for poor … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Court Management, Self-Help Services | Comments Off on NCSC Launches New Court Access Center

The Age/Innovation Conundrum and Implications for Access to Justice

Posted on August 18, 2012 by richardzorza

A fascinating post several months ago in the New York Times Economix blog, Getting More Liberal With Age, deals with the age-old conundrum as to whether people really become more conservative as they get older. In contrast to received wisdom: A … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Court Management, Legal Aid | Comments Off on The Age/Innovation Conundrum and Implications for Access to Justice

Request for Examples of Courts Providing Information on Legal Aid and Access to Counsel Services

Posted on July 16, 2012 by richardzorza

Jim Greiner at Harvard (the prof who did the randomized studies in Massachusetts) is trying to find samples of courts who attach notices or flyers to summonses or other early-in-the-litigation-type papers that say something to the effect of, “If you … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Counsel, Court Management | 2 Comments

Impact on Funding of Planning Participation

Posted on July 2, 2012 by richardzorza

I recently blogged about changes in the Byrne Grant Program, and the potential from changes in the strategic planning language. Now, here’s some evidence that participation in the strategic planning process might impact funding outcomes. As the GAO reports on … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Defender Programs, Funding | Comments Off on Impact on Funding of Planning Participation

Changes in Byrne Grant Program Create New Openings for Defenders and Courts

Posted on June 29, 2012 by richardzorza

The 2012 solicitation time for Byrne Grants is over (link here.) But I think it is important to highlight some very significant changes, which, given the inertia built into government systems, are likely to stay in place, and to provide … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Defender Programs, Dept. of Justice, Funding | 2 Comments

LSC Access to Justice Technology Summit — Inspiring Launch of A Process

Posted on June 23, 2012 by richardzorza

The first part of the LSC Summit on Technology and Access to Justice took place last week.  I think it is appropriate for me to pass on to the community some very personal and impressionistic non-specific highlights. First, it was … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Dept. of Justice, LSC, Systematic Change, Technology | 5 Comments

NCSC Court Trends 2012 Online — Article on Turner v Rogers and Due Process

Posted on June 15, 2012 by richardzorza

The NCSC publication Future Trend in State Courts 2012, is now up on their website. From the preface by Mary McQueen: This year’s edition of the National Center for State Courts’ Future Trends in State Courts series focuses on “Courts … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Funding | Comments Off on NCSC Court Trends 2012 Online — Article on Turner v Rogers and Due Process

Carl Reynolds Retires from Texas Administrative Office of Courts

Posted on April 20, 2012 by richardzorza

Carl Reynolds, Director of the Texas Administrative Office of the Courts, is retiring.  Here is his biography, as distributed at the January 2012 Shared Solutions Summit: Carl Reynolds is an attorney with extensive experience in all three branches of Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management | Tagged | Comments Off on Carl Reynolds Retires from Texas Administrative Office of Courts

A New Cut at Triage Principles

Posted on February 28, 2012 by richardzorza

A few weeks ago, I bogged on some principles for triage that had come out of a meeting at the TIG conference. Since then I have elaborated and expanded them, including expanded their scope to include triage conducted to determine … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Technology, Transparency, Triage | 3 Comments

High Performance Courts

Posted on February 4, 2012 by richardzorza

One approach the National Center has been taking to improve the functioning of courts nationally is to focus on overall strategies for achieving “high performance.”  There are seven such strategies, highlighted here in an article by Judge Kevin Burke, Brian … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Generally, Court Management | 1 Comment

New York Access Group Keeps on Moving

Posted on January 19, 2012 by richardzorza

This should inspire us all.  As you know, the NY courts have had a brutal budget year.  Yet they have just issued their 2011 Access Report, showing some great new innovations: The creation of a trilingual DIY (document assembly) form … Continue reading →

Posted in Court Management, Document Assembly, Self-Help Services | Tagged , , | Comments Off on New York Access Group Keeps on Moving

California Daily Journal on Costs of Cutting Self-Help Programs

Posted on January 17, 2012 by richardzorza

The (California) Daily Journal, a legal publication, has a good story on the risk that cutting back on self-help services may end up costing more than it saves.  A good article to cite to. Just a few years ago, California … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget Issues, Court Management, Research and Evalation, Self-Help Services | Tagged | Comments Off on California Daily Journal on Costs of Cutting Self-Help Programs

Democratization of Decision-Making — Implications for Access to Justice Institutions

Posted on December 19, 2011 by richardzorza

Tom Friedman in the NY Times, argues that both both companies and counties, the old top down decision-making and leadership systems are obsolete. The main driver, I believe, is the merger of globalization and the Information Technology revolution. Both of … Continue reading →

Posted in Access to Justice Boards, Court Management, Dept. of Justice, Technology, Transparency | Comments Off on Democratization of Decision-Making — Implications for Access to Justice Institutions