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Paths to Justice
The Bold Steps We Need to Reform Civil Justice
February 1, 2024
IAALS' Paths to Justice summit series explored the paths of the pandemic, the paths to access, and the paths to racial justice that our system must walk in our new normal. The issue papers from the summit continue to have strong relevance, and are published here with clear themes as guideposts to improve our justice system.
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Community & Cooperation
Action Steps toward Unlocking Legal Regulation
August 2, 2023
Stemming from our 2022 Community & Cooperation convening, this report distills key themes and recommendations for next steps aimed at bolstering existing regulatory innovation efforts and kickstarting new ones, and creating opportunities to engage new people and perspectives in the movement.
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Allied Legal Professionals: A National Framework for Program Growth
June 6, 2023
This report summarizes best practices for allied legal professional (ALP) programs, including 18 high-level recommendations, that can serve as a guide for states considering, implementing, or refining ALP programs.
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The Past & Future of State Court Civil Filings
May 9, 2023
In this report, IAALS explores a longer-term view of civil filings in our state courts and provides additional insights into the specific role that courts have played in resolving cases, how that role might be changing, and the factors that are expected to continue to influence the filing of cases in our state court system going forward.
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A Renewed Analysis of the Expedited Action Rules in Texas Courts
Civil Justice Initiative
April 6, 2023
In this report from the Civil Justice Initiative, the Texas Office of Court Administration, the National Center for State Courts, and IAALS found that rules adopted by the Supreme Court of Texas in 2012 have expedited the resolution of cases—both before and after the pandemic.
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The Landscape of Allied Legal Professional Programs in the United States
November 16, 2022
This report examines why many states have begun to create a new tier of legal service providers who are not lawyers, and describes the similarities and differences between each program. The report is designed to be used as a resource for states interested in creating their own program to understand not only what other states’ programs consist of, but also the reasoning behind many of their decisions.
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Unbundled Legal Services in the New Normal
September 30, 2022
This report details the key discussion points from the Unbundled Legal Services in the New Normal conference, focusing on how the pandemic helped normalize digitization and the use of technology for legal service providers generally—and how to further advance unbundled legal services nationwide.
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Judicial Performance Evaluation in the States
The IAALS JPE 2.0 Pre-Convening White Paper
May 18, 2022
This white paper is a primer on the general purposes and history of judicial performance evaluation (JPE); the various evaluation criteria, tools, and procedures used in JPE programs; the varying perspectives on JPE; and issues in the realm of JPE warranting focused consideration going forward.
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Denver Law Firm Coalition for Racial Equity Convening Summary Report
October 20, 2021
In 2020, the Denver Law Firm Coalition for Racial Equity and IAALS brought together local leaders to identify and explore sustainable and long-term DEI solutions. This report details best practices and recommendations to recruit, retain, and advance racially diverse attorneys.
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Justice Needs and Satisfaction in the United States of America
September 1, 2021
This report provides nationwide data on the justice needs that people in the United States experience every day and a deeper understanding of how people in the United States resolve those justice needs, as well as what is working and what isn’t, to inform and help target reform efforts.
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Foundations: Hiring Guide
Foundations: Hiring Guide
Cut through Bias. Hire & Retain the Best Lawyers.
April 12, 2021
This guide is for employers who want to improve their hiring practices—to improve quality, retention, and diversity—based on what IAALS has learned from the Foundations for Practice project. The guide is a set of principles and recommendations geared toward hiring candidates suited to excel at an organization— based on that organization’s practice, vision, goals, and needs—that can be adapted to the specific objectives and goals of different employers.
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Foundations: Instructional Design Guide
Foundations: Instructional Design Guide
Use Learning Outcomes & Standards-Based Assessments to Train Better Lawyers
April 12, 2021
This instructional design guide is for educators who are interested in using what IAALS has learned from the Foundations for Practice project as a basis for learning outcomes and standards-based assessments. The guide uses a step-by-step approach to implement a Foundations-based instructional model in the university law classroom.
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Initial Discovery Protocols
for Business Interruption Insurance Disputes Arising from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Similar Public Health Threats
February 9, 2021
These Initial Discovery Protocols provide a new pretrial procedure that aims to reduce conflict and cost and to help businesses and insurers reach quick resolution during the COVID-19 pandemic, whether it be in settlement, motions practice, or trial. They are designed to be implemented by trial judges, lawyers, and litigants in state and federal courts.
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Pandemic Positives
Extending the Reach of Court and Legal Services
October 30, 2020
Through detailed case studies, this report showcases the innovation occurring in courts, self-help centers, legal aid centers, and law/public libraries in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lessons learned from these organizations can be helpful to others that are still updating their services or exploring adding virtual services.
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Building a Better Bar
The Twelve Building Blocks of Minimum Competence
October 28, 2020
The legal profession has never had a clear, explicit understanding of the minimum competence needed to practice law and how it should be tested on the bar exam (or through other licensing approaches). In this report, we have defined minimum competence and have new recommendations for how the legal licensing process—including the bar exam—must change to better serve the public.
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