Author: Lauren Curtis

The Institute for Intergovernmental Research, in partnership with the State Justice Institute, created the Reaching Rural Resource Center: Justice and Behavioral Health. This site serves as a comprehensive resource hub and connection point to share timely publications, complementary websites, webinars and other virtual leaning opportunities, and solution-oriented guidance specifically focusing on rural communities at the nexus of justice, behavioral health, and substance use disorder (SUD).

The R3C will be maintained by IIR as a “living” space, evolving to reflect the dynamic disciplines, experts, and organizations driving solutions for rural America by continually canvassing the field for additional materials, program spotlights, funding sources, and evidence-based practices. Some of the most-referenced, no-cost resources on the R3C include IIR’s Overdose Fatality Review website (featuring a suite of practical toolkits), Successful Strategies for Addressing the Opioid Epidemic in Rural Communities series, and resources related to implementing peer support services across the intercepts.

Through funding provided by SJI, IIR and partnering agency Rulo Strategies are able to offer field-assisted support at no charge to rural communities. Through the R3C, users can request a wide range of tailored assistance in different modalities, including virtual coaching, on-site visits, resource gathering, networking, and grant-writing support. The site also features a Collaboration Center, where rural practitioners from across the country can virtually network—sharing, learning, and force-multiplying one another’s important work. The R3C—and its opportunities for peer-to-peer connection, multisystem collaboration, and professional development—is intentionally and impactfully filling gaps in field-focused assistance left by the cancellation of the Reaching Rural Initiative. The R3C team looks forward to its continued work with rural communities across the United States and hopes that the Reaching Rural Resource Center: Justice and Behavioral Health is a valuable tool in the collective commitment to support justice-involved individuals battling mental health issues and SUD.

Traffic cases continue to dominate state court caseloads while growing civil dockets are surpassing criminal cases with the second largest number of filings, according to newly released data from NCSC’s Court Statistics Project (CSP).

“We’ve been tracking traffic trends for some time, so we’re not surprised by the 2024 data showing that traffic filings continued to recover after one of the largest drops during the pandemic,” said Nicole Waters, NCSC’s director of data, analytics, and forecasting. “By tracking these state and national trends, we provide important data-driven insights courts can use in their decision-making.”

Delivering a comprehensive overview

In 2024, states saw traffic infractions accounting for about 46% of all incoming cases. An 11% increase in contract cases, including growing numbers of real property disputes, prompted the rise in civil filings.

The updated CSP dashboards reflect data from over 200 reporting units that was either self-reported or collected through alternate sources like annual reports. These interactive dashboards provide overviews for trial and appellate courts and track data points including incoming case types, clearance rates, dispositions, and trials (bench and jury).

Comparing court structures & governance

The Court Statistics Project also maintains data on how state and local courts are organized, structured, and governed in its State Court Organization dashboard. A recent upgrade to the dashboard includes enhanced filters, summaries, and related resources.

A longstanding commitment to court statistics

A collaborative initiative of NCSC and the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA), the Court Statistics Project collects, analyzes, and publishes caseload data from state courts across the country, offering insights that empower court leaders to make data-driven decisions.

For over 50 years, CSP has served as the primary resource for understanding trends in court operations, helping stakeholders allocate resources, implement policies, and improve public trust in the justice system.

Learn more about the Court Statistics Project.

Read more here: Explore court caseload data | National Center for State Courts

Generative AI is transforming how courts automate processes, streamline workflows, and serve the public — creating opportunities for efficiency while raising questions about ethics, accuracy, and fairness. Judges, administrators, and court staff now have access to free, role-specific training to help them adopt artificial intelligence responsibly in court operations.

To help courts implement AI responsibly, the Thomson Reuters Institute (TRI)/NCSC AI Policy Consortium for Law & Courts has launched AI Literacy for Courts. The new educational program was created by the consortium’s workforce readiness workgroup and offers tailored learning pathways for judges, administrators, staff attorneys, court reporters, clerks, and interpreters.

The program offers more than 20 resources in various formats — videos, webinars, reports, guidance documents, and knowledge-check questions — designed to meet the specific needs of different court roles. Eight resources apply to all, while others target specific positions with tailored content that addresses their unique responsibilities and challenges.

Curriculum highlights include:

• Ethical principles and operational best practices: Data privacy, fairness, transparency, human oversight, and risk avoidance.
• AI tools in court operations: Practical applications for HR tasks, translation services, public-facing chatbots, legal research, and document review.
• Navigating emerging challenges: Advanced guidance on deepfake evidence, risk mitigation, preventing “hallucinations,” effective governance, and ethical guardrails.

An introductory webinar on Nov. 19, “AI Literacy for Courts: A New Framework for Role-Specific Education,” will showcase the program, explore resources available for each court role, and provide implementation strategies for court leaders.

The consortium’s October webinar, “Key Considerations for Using Generative AI Tools in Legal Practice and Courts,” is available on demand and offers foundational best practices for courts considering AI adoption.

Visit ncsc.org/ai to find the course and access more AI resources. 

The Rural Justice Collaborative (RJC) has released a series of Lessons Learned for rural communities working toward solutions in their communities. Drawing directly from the experiences of those working on the front lines, this series showcases effective strategies and collaborative approaches aimed at improving outcomes for individuals affected by substance use in rural communities. Through firsthand accounts and practical examples, we are working to inspire and inform justice, health, behavioral health, service, and community stakeholders dedicated to advancing positive outcomes in their rural communities. Funded by the State Justice Institute and produced for the RJC by Mtn Craft in collaboration with our partner Rulo Strategies, this series highlights insights and lessons learned from rural leaders actively engaged in cross-sector partnerships.

Every year, the equivalent of more than 14% of the U.S. population has a traffic or misdemeanor case. While many consider justice involvement to be a phenomenon that does not impact their own lives, or the lives of those around them, the reality is that most U.S. adults have either interacted with the justice system at some point in their lives, or know someone who has. Still, navigating even these commonplace offenses creates undue strain on individuals and courts, as in-person appearances must be made to negotiate a case; requiring scheduling court visits around work schedules or childcare, determining transportation for those without consistent access to a car, and increasing workload on court staff.

While the COVID-19 pandemic encouraged the implementation of solutions such as virtual hearings and other avenues to navigate the legal system virtually, these avenues often remain dated or difficult to use, and frequently do not provide relief to court staff workloads. Though remote work and telecommunication vastly increased across the country over the last 5 years, court systems have not taken full advantage of these innovations.

In late 2024, the Justice Management Institute (JMI) and Kalamuna received a strategic initiatives grant from the State Justice Institute to develop a joint project aimed at expanding and streamlining the use of online case resolution (OCR). OCR aims to enable individuals who are arrested or issued citations for traffic or misdemeanor cases to easily navigate and manage their cases online and (with their lawyers as needed) to conduct transactions, plea negotiations, and resolve cases without physically appearing in court. Meanwhile, for courts and prosecutors, OCR reduces workload and time, as cases can be managed online, including pretrial and post-adjudication transactions, as well as court hearings.

Read the full article here: OCR Assessment | JMI Justice

Download the report here: OCR-Assessment-Report_FIN4.pdf