Category: News And Announcements

Funded by the State Justice Institute, the National Center for State Courts, in partnership with Rulo Strategies LLC, launched the Rural Justice Collaborative (RJC) to showcase the strengths of rural communities and highlight the cross-sector collaboration that is a hallmark of rural justice systems. These strengths include strong professional networks, deep ties to the communities they serve, resiliency, and ingenuity. The Rural Justice Collaborative is guided by an advisory council of rural practitioners representing the judiciary, public safety, behavioral health, public health, child welfare, victim services and other stakeholder-focused justice systems. The advisory council guides the initiative and has focused initial efforts on advancing innovation, promoting collaboration, and raising awareness of rural justice system needs.

A new data literacy course, funded by SJI, is in development to help build future-ready courts and meet the growing demand for court data expertise. Courts will soon have a new tool to support staff who use and communicate with data to generate insights and optimize performance. The data literacy course will help build future-ready courts and meet the growing demand for court data expertise.

The curriculum, which will be tested and refined over the next few months, covers the data lifecycle, court statistics, data visualization, ethics, and governance. A national online launch is anticipated in 2026.

“Data literacy is a core skill for today’s court professional,” said Nicole Waters, NCSC’s director of data, analytics, and forecasting. “Working with data is not just a technical skill, but a fundamental skill that helps court personnel meaningfully contribute to decision-making and improve data quality throughout all court processes.”

The course is designed for three key audiences:

1. Court administrators who need to request, read, and interpret data to gain actionable insights from reports.
2. New hires in research and data offices who must quickly understand the unique challenges of state court data.
3. Court staff seeking to strengthen their skills in processing and utilizing data for daily operations.

The inspiration for the course came after NCSC worked with the Orange County (California) Superior Court on a curriculum to help staff with limited data experience assist the court with an increased volume of data requests. Over time, NCSC principal court research associate and project lead Diane Robinson said the team identified similar needs across the country and began developing a national curriculum for online delivery.

Resources available now

In the meantime, NCSC continues to provide data resources, including the expert-led “Data Dives” webinar series, the semi-annual in-person Data Specialists and IT Summit, and quarterly virtual meetings for data specialists, where court professionals discuss key data challenges and innovations. Courts can access current resources to improve their court data at ncsc.org/data.

The SJI Board of Directors will be meeting on Monday, September 15, 2025, at 1:00 PM MT.  The purpose of this meeting is to consider grant applications for the 4^th quarter of FY 2025, and other business.

ADDRESS:  Supreme Court of Montana, Mazurek Building, 215 North Sanders Street, Helena, MT.

New report offers phased approach to responsibly harness AI and expand access to justice

The IAALS, the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver, has just released a new report. Regulating AI in the Delivery of Consumer-Facing Legal Services: Unlocking Legal Regulation outlines a clear and actionable framework for how the legal profession can respond to the rise of artificial intelligence tools already being used by the public to navigate legal issues.

Amid a growing access to justice crisis—where most low- and middle-income Americans still cannot get legal help when they need it—Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools present both a challenge and an opportunity. While the legal community has debated how AI might affect lawyers, judges, and the profession itself, far less attention has been paid to how AI is changing the experience for everyday people trying to understand their rights, resolve disputes, and access the courts.

“Generative AI is already reshaping how people seek legal help, but our regulatory system hasn’t kept pace,” said Jessica Bednarz, IAALS’ Director of Legal Services and the Profession. “We can’t afford to ignore these tools or overregulate them into irrelevance. This report offers a clear, measured path forward that protects consumers while allowing innovation to thrive.”

The report acknowledges the real risks that come with AI, including concerns around accuracy, accountability, privacy, and bias. At the same time, it highlights AI’s transformative potential to scale legal information, advice, and services in ways the traditional system has failed to deliver. If developed responsibly, these tools could become a powerful force in closing the justice gap.

“We’re facing both a crisis and a breakthrough,” said Jeff Ward, Director of the Duke Center on Law & Tech. “Responsible AI might help close the justice gap, but only if we reimagine our regulatory systems. IAALS’ phased approach shows how we can act with both urgency and care to create an environment where trustworthy legal tools can flourish.”

The phased approach begins with a focus on experimentation, education, and consumer protection, while continuing to gather data and evaluate how people use these tools. The second phase, contemplated for the future, would involve more formal regulation based on what is learned. This thoughtful process is designed to encourage innovation while keeping consumer needs and public trust at the forefront.

The report stems from IAALS’ November 2024 convening of leaders from across the legal, regulatory, and technology communities. Participants explored the tension between outdated regulatory frameworks and modern tools that are increasingly used by people without lawyers. In particular, the group examined how unauthorized practice of law rules often have a chilling effect on legal aid organizations, courts, and entrepreneurs who are trying to serve self-represented litigants.

IAALS and the Duke Center on Law & Tech also hosted a follow-up webinar series—AI, Access to Justice & UPL: Shaping the Future of Legal Services—to continue the conversation and explore key themes from the convening in greater depth. You can watch the recordings here. In addition, a workshop series focused on developing non-prosecution policies for regulating AI in consumer-facing legal services will follow this fall. 

Read the full report here.

Funded by the State Justice Institute, the National Center for State Courts, in partnership with Rulo Strategies LLC, launched the Rural Justice Collaborative (RJC) to showcase the strengths of rural communities and highlight the cross-sector collaboration that is a hallmark of rural justice systems. These strengths include strong professional networks, deep ties to the communities they serve, resiliency, and ingenuity. The Rural Justice Collaborative is guided by an advisory council of rural practitioners representing the judiciary, public safety, behavioral health, public health, child welfare, victim services and other stakeholder-focused justice systems. The advisory council guides the initiative and has focused initial efforts on advancing innovation, promoting collaboration, and raising awareness of rural justice system needs.

Last year, the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators adopted a resolution urging NCSC to showcase effective, scalable models for civil diversion programs that create alternate pathways for litigants to resolve disputes. These programs would be grounded in a set of guiding principles, which encourage collaboration with other civil justice system partners.  

Inspired by that resolution, NCSC formed a partnership with the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and the Court of Common Pleas in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, which had an existing consumer debt diversion program. 

A review of filings from the first half of 2024 showed that the court’s diversion program reduced the number of cases on the docket by more than half. Those results suggested that this market was ready for testing software developed by AAA. The software is designed to help further expand a burgeoning diversion program the court had established to address credit card debt cases.

“NCSC has been extremely supportive of the Lancaster County Court’s vital Credit Card Diversion Program,” said Shelley Schenk, diversion program coordinator and staff attorney of the Lancaster County Court of Commons Pleas. “The AI App developed by AAA will save the court a great deal of time and resources.”

The purpose of the software—coined the Court Diversion Eligibility Screener—Built by AAA—is to help increase access to justice, preserve judicial resources, and streamline civil caseload management. The screener applies AI to help court staff evaluate and triage cases while also automating the administration and management of those that are routed for diversion.

Software such as this will be most impactful in jurisdictions where court-based civil diversion programs are already in place (or are ready to be launched) and sound case flow management practices exist and are ready for automation. With staff support and oversight, successful diversion programs can be optimized to divert cases more efficiently while reducing the burden on court staff and improving the litigant experience. AAA and NCSC are now partnering to make the eligibility screener software available for use by other courts. Read more about the partnership in this article on NCSC’s website, and contact the Access to Justice team to learn more.

A new resource is now available to support courts in upholding state and federal law and applying Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which applies to all state and local government entities, including courts.

Serving People with Disabilities and Title II of the ADA: A Toolkit for Courts helps courts address aspects of the law that apply to court services, covering areas from physical access to digital accessibility.

“Making courts accessible for people with disabilities improves the system for all users,” said Grace Spulak, an NCSC principal court management consultant and lead author of the toolkit. “Thinking about the needs of court users with disabilities leads to process simplification, clearer communication, and better navigation for everyone. It’s a win-win!”

Courts can serve people with disabilities by developing accessible resources, services, buildings, or documents, and by creating accommodations or modifications to existing ones to meet individual needs.

The toolkit details essential aspects of serving people with disabilities, including:

• Establishing relationships with the disability community
• Ensuring effective communication
• Addressing document and web accessibility
• Considering building and facility accessibility
• Understanding the use of service animals
• Addressing the use of mobility devices

For more information on access to justice and to access the toolkit and other accessibility resources, visit: ncsc.org/accessibility.

Navigating AI in court translation is opening new doors for access to justice.

To meet the needs of Limited English Proficient (LEP) users, the Superior Court in Orange County, Calif., is leveraging an AI-powered Court Application for Translation (CAT) tool.

Blanca Escobedo, deputy chief operations officer for Orange County Superior Court, shared an overview of the tool last month during the “AI-assisted translation in the courts: Exploring opportunities and navigating risks” webinar, presented by the TRI/NCSC AI Consortium.

Orange County’s experience with machine translation

California’s CAT initiative began with the top two languages needed in Orange County: Spanish and Vietnamese. The court customized a third-party product to understand legal terminology to improve translation accuracy and hired certified translators and interpreters for quality control. By combining machine translation with certified human review, they’ve improved accuracy, cut costs, and sped up case processing. Learn how AI and human expertise together can transform court services: Navigating AI in court translation: Insights for court leaders | National Center for State Courts

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