Category: News And Announcements

The SJI Board of Directors met on April 23, 2018, at the St. Louis County, Missouri, Courthouse to make decisions on quarterly grant applications and awarded a total of 13 new grants.

A Strategic Initiatives Grant (SIG) was awarded to the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) to support a Natural Language Processing initiative for state courts.   Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a field of computer science, artificial intelligence, and computational linguistics that employs predictive analysis and machine learning, and focuses on the interaction between computers and both written and spoken language.  NLP has become useful for a variety of legal tasks, most prominently as the primary technique employed in e-discovery to identify documented related to a specific query based on keywords or phrases.  Although courts have vast repositories of legal documents, they have been slow to adopt NLP technologies.  This project will support the use of NLP for court operations in two distinct areas: 1) triage of civil cases into appropriate case processing pathways; and; 2) quality control for high-volume dockets to ensure principals of procedural due process.  For civil case triage, the NCSC will work with general jurisdiction courts that participated in the Civil Justice Initiative (CJI) automated civil case triage project, to use NLP to identify and extract key terms and characteristics from the case pleadings and develop a more robust triage model than was possible using a case management system.  For quality control over high-volume documents, the NCSC will work with one or more limited jurisdiction courts to identify inaccurate or missing information from case documents in consumer debt collection or other high-volume dockets that would signal the need for increased judicial review.  The project will be guided by an 8-member Advisory Committee consisting of the Conference of State Court Administrators/National Association for Court Management/NCSC Joint Technology Committee (JTC), the Court Information Technology Officers Consortium (CITOC), and other subject matter experts.

A Project Grant was awarded to the Missouri Judiciary to support a Circuit Realignment Plan.  The plan will include: recommendations for changes to the geographical boundaries and territorial jurisdiction of the judicial circuits; a statement on the numbers and boundaries of the proposed judicial circuits, together with a map of the proposed judicial circuits; a current judicial weighted workload model, clerical weighted workload model, judicial duties and travel time; and other information deemed relevant by the Missouri Judicial Conference.

Seven (7) Technical Assistance (TA) Grants were awarded: The 4th Judicial Circuit of Florida to increase access to family court forms; the Kentucky Administrative Office of the Courts for a criminal case management assessment in Jefferson County; Yakima County, Washington, Superior Court for a calendaring and case management project; the National Association of Presiding Judges and Court Executive Officers (NAPCO) to update and promote the 2005 monograph titled, Key Elements of an Effective Rule of Court on the Role of the Presiding Judge in Trial Courts; the Berrien County, Michigan, Trial Court for a strategic planning project; the Hawaii Judiciary for a plain language English translation and training initiative; and the 37th Judicial Circuit of Alabama for a caseload assessment.

Four (4) Curriculum Adaptation and Training (CAT) Grants were awarded: the National Judicial College (NJC) for a judicial webcasts series; the NJC for a judicial podcast series; the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts to develop a curriculum for establishing business courts; and the 8th District Court of Michigan for an implicit bias/procedural fairness education program for judges and staff.

The next deadline for grant applications is August 1, 2018 (FY 2018, 4th quarter).

On May 15, 2018, The U.S. Senate confirmed SJI Board member John Nalbandian to be a U.S. Circuit Court Judge for the Sixth Circuit.

Mr. Nalbandian currently is a partner in the Litigation Department of Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP.  He concentrates on appellate and complex litigation in state and federal courts and is a member of the firm’s Appellate Practice group.  He has represented clients in a wide range of areas including antitrust, class actions, products liability, intellectual property, and white collar crime.  Mr. Nalbandian is a member of the Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, and District of Columbia Bars.  He is a member of the Ohio State Bar Association and the American Bar Association. He also serves on the Ohio State Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Specialty Board and is a member of the Greater Cincinnati Minority Counsel Program’s Board of Directors.

Mr. Nalbandian is a Life Member of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and serves on the Life Member Committee.  He has served as a Board member of the Telecommunications Board of Northern Kentucky and the Northern Kentucky Tri-Ed Board of Directors, and has been recognized annually since 2007 by The Best Lawyers in America for his work in Appellate Law. He has also served as a Special Justice on the Kentucky Supreme Court and is a frequent presenter on appellate practice.  He was appointed to the SJI Board of Directors in 2010.

The National Judicial College (NJC) regularly offers webcasts that provide judges with a flexible opportunity to engage in professional development from their chambers.  SJI and other partners often provide resources to the NJC, so they are able to offer webcasts at no charge with advance registration.  The NJC also maintains an On-Demand Catalog of course content and webcasts that are archived.

The NJC has a website for upcoming webcasts, and the option to subscribe to a list for future course and eCasts announcements.

Earlier this month, as part of Law Day celebrations taking place across the country, the Cochise County Law Library reopened as a Self-Help Center.  Housed within the Bisbee Courthouse, the newly remodeled space offers dynamic new spaces filled with natural light, allowing for individual and group discussions.

With a grant from SJI, consultants from the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) were able to provide assistance to the Court in order to achieve a transformation that will allow greater access to legal forms, information, and/or guided help with research for both attorneys and the public.  Some of the outcomes included:

• Space where events and informational clinics can be held;
• Added public computer terminals for public research;
• Dedicated space for interpreters and translators to work with clients;
• Caselaw access electronically; and,
• A new librarian position to assist with increased traffic.

To learn more about the effective use of court space and resources, visit the Cochise County news page and the NCSC’s courthouse facilities section website.

The Conference of Chief Justices/Conference of State Court Administrators (CCJ/COSCA) National Task Force on Fines, Fees, and Bail Practices recently released an 8-page report titled, Principles on Fines, Fees, and Bail Practices.

The principles each fall into one of the following seven categories:

• Structural and Policy-Related Principles
• Governance Principles
• Transparency Principles
• Fundamental Fairness Principles
• Pretrial Release and Bail Reform Principles
• Fines, Fees and Alternative Sanctions Principles; and,
• Accountability Principles

Categories and principles are expected to be refined as the Task Force and its stakeholders work through existing and emerging issues on court fines, fees, and bail practices, including pending legislation and cases in individual states.

The Task Force originated in 2016 from the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators.  Collaboration at the time identified a need to: develop recommendations and tools to promote the fair and efficient enforcement of the law; ensure no person is denied access to the justice system based on lack of economic resources; and, develop policies relating to legal financial obligations that promote access, fairness, and transparency.  SJI, along with the DOJ/Bureau of Justice Assistance, has provided grant funding to support the work of the Task Force.

The Human Trafficking and the State Courts Collaborative recently added a new resource –  a webinar by the National Resource Center on Justice Involved Women and the Center for Court Innovation that explores the nexus between prostitution, human trafficking, and victimization among justice involved women.  Over 200 participants registered for the original webinar, and it continues to be shared weekly.

Content included:

• Strategies that justice system stakeholders can take to identify women who may be victims of exploitation and human trafficking;
• Tools to address their needs; and,
• Ways the justice system and its partners can collectively improve their response to these women.

The full webinar is available online as are the materials and additional resources.

With grant funding from SJI and technical expertise from the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), the Elements of Judicial Excellence framework was created to support professional development of state trial court judges.  This unique resource identifies three specific elements necessary to achieving judicial excellence and professional growth, including:

• Citizen of the Court Community: Ethics and Integrity; Engagement; and, Well-Being
• Informed and Impartial Decision Maker: Knowledge of the Law and Justice System; Critical Thinking; and, Self-Knowledge and Self-Control
• Leader of the Court Process: Managing the Case and Court Process; Building Respect and Understanding; and, Facilitating Resolution

Based on the Illinois state Circuit Court and associate judges model, the following guiding documents are included in this new resource:

• Elements of Judicial Excellence Framework: The framework and how to use it is detailed in this 39-page document that introduces concepts, provides citations and resources for further reading, and practical application by trail court judges.
• Elements of Judicial Excellence – Final Report: The complete project final report provides an overview of the framework and its development, explains how the framework can be appropriately used, identifies key lessons learned from the project experience, and describes several potential research directions. The report includes a technical appendix on data collection (Appendix A) and, importantly, the Elements of Judicial Excellence framework document (Appendix B).

Elements of Judicial Education combines established needs, best practices, and new insights that judges themselves believe are important to judicial excellence, as well as recommended strategies to support professional growth.

On May 22-25, 2017, the Minnesota Judicial Branch, with support from SJI, the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office, and the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, hosted a statewide training: Sex Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation 102: Engagement Strategies for Working with Sexually Exploited Children.

Judges from each of Minnesota’s ten judicial districts and one United States District Court judge each selected a team of systems professionals to represent their district in this training, which focused on building an effective systems response to sex trafficking and sexual exploitation of children. In all, 21 judges and 71 systems professionals, including Minnesota Safe Harbor Regional Navigators, community-based advocates, law enforcement, prosecution, victim services, child protection, and probation, participated in this two and a half-day training.

Following the program, a report was prepared, containing a summary of major themes from the training and recommendations for next steps in building an effective systems response to sex trafficking and sexual exploitation of children.

These recommendations include:

• Utilizing the influence of judges on the systems response and in the community;
• Developing a comprehensive response;
• Leveraging existing resources;
• Adhering to the Minnesota Safe Harbor Protocol Guidelines;
• Working towards systems change;
• Ensuring a culturally-responsive systems response; and,
• Incorporating the youth/survivor perspective.

The full report is available online. In addition to the elements above, a report-back on the district-specific multidisciplinary team activities is featured.

An initiative of the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), Reimagining Dependence Courts (RDC) launched in 2016 with support from Casey Family Programs and SJI.

RDC released its inaugural eight page Permanency Report providing a snapshot of foster care system. The report details state-by-state data on key foster care and permanency measures, as well as examples of strategies being implemented through the project to reduce court delay in achieving permanency.

The project has already realized results by providing judicial leaders with children and family and outcome data, in addition to the court process measures courts. Some of the measures found in the Permanency Report include the percentage of children in foster care who have been in care for more than 24 months and the percentage of foster children in the state who are waiting for adoption.

In addition to this project and the report, the NCSC also hosts an online resource guide devoted to dependency courts.

Earlier this month, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) announced 24 new and supplemental grant awards from a variety of funders, including the State Justice Institute (SJI).  This support, totaling more than $11 million, will ensure justice and improve outcomes for families and children in courts nationwide.

SJI is pleased to support an initiative on military families in juvenile and family courts. In partnership with the U. S. Department of Defense, this initiative will allow the NCJFCJ to identify and recruit juvenile and family courts in jurisdictions with significant military presence; create an online national resource center; develop a training curriculum for judges, military command, and key stakeholders; and hold a second summit on military families and state courts for continuing and sustaining these efforts.

“The NCJFCJ is ecstatic to continue its partnership with the State Justice Institute to address issues faced by military families in the juvenile and family court system,” said Judge Anthony (Tony) Capizzi, NCJFCJ president. “Military families face unique challenges including long separations from one another as a result of deployments or relocations, chronic pain, traumatic brain injury and mental health including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.  The NCJFCJ looks forward to working with judges to address the needs of military-connected families, with access to resources like counseling and child care services, while being sensitive to the traumas they may have experienced.”