A Blueprint for Judicial Innovation: New Report Calls on Judges to Lead System Change
Judicial leadership guidance provides practical strategies and resources for court transformation
IAALS, the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, and the Berkeley Judicial Institute (BJI)—with support from the State Justice Institute—today released A Blueprint for Judicial Innovation, which details takeaways from Advancing Innovation: A National Summit on Judicial Leadership. The publication distills insights from a national gathering of nearly 50 judicial leaders across 30 jurisdictions and offers concrete guidance for judges who are ready to drive people-centered reform across our justice system.
Throughout the country, courts are grappling with unmet legal needs, complex and opaque processes, widening inequities, and declining public trust. The Blueprint makes a simple, urgent case: judicial leadership is indispensable to rebuilding confidence and modernizing court systems. It presents a practical roadmap—rooted in real courtroom experiences—for judges to lead change ethically, effectively, and sustainably.
“Innovation is not an optional add-on to judging. A judge’s ability to do justice is directly informed by the quality of our justice system. Judges must be active participants in the work to improve our justice system so that it can fulfill the promise of equal justice for all,” said IAALS CEO Brittany Kauffman. “This Blueprint translates aspiration into action and identifies the resources judges need, the obstacles they face, and the concrete steps that move courts from status quo to people-centered systems.”
Drawing from sessions, roundtables, and skill-building workshops, the Blueprint highlights:
- The role of judges in leading innovation: Why frontline insight and judicial authority are pivotal for systems-level change.
- Competencies of innovative leadership: From strategic thinking and data use to coalition-building and judicial wellness.
- Common barriers and how to overcome them: Resource constraints, status-quo bias, ethical misconceptions, siloing, and collaboration challenges—paired with strategies to build buy-in and momentum.
- Actionable strategies for the bench: Normalize change, question assumptions, pilot and iterate, gather data, engage skeptics, simplify processes, communicate clearly, and just get started.
- Resources judges need to succeed: Engaged people and partners, reliable technology and data capacity, diverse funding, time, a culture of creativity and iteration, and robust wellness supports.
“Judges are uniquely positioned to see where our system is falling short—and to galvanize solutions,” said BJI Executive Director Judge Jeremy Fogel. “This report gives the bench a pragmatic playbook with competencies to cultivate, strategies to deploy, and partners to engage so innovation becomes part of the judicial craft, not a side project.”
The Blueprint stems from Advancing Innovation: A National Summit on Judicial Leadership, co-hosted by IAALS and BJI in Denver on September 19–20, 2024. The publication captures judges’ shared vision for courts that are accessible, equitable, efficient, and trustworthy—and translates that vision into steps leaders can take now, whether presiding over a busy trial docket or shaping statewide policy.
To continue the momentum from the summit, IAALS and BJI are hosting an ongoing webinar series that offers judges and court leaders across the country an opportunity to deepen competencies, learn from peers, and explore the ethical contours of innovating from the bench. Judges are encouraged to attend to build community, sharpen skills, and translate the Blueprint into immediate practice.
A Blueprint for Judicial Innovation is a call to action. As community leaders, judges must embrace the mantle of judicial leadership, begin with focused steps, measure their impact, and share what works with others. Courts can meet the moment—not by doing more of the same, but by leading with clarity, courage, and collaboration.
