As many have recognized, electronic discovery has arrived in the state courts. While there are abundant resources available on the topic of e-discovery, for many judges the question is, “Where to begin?” To answer that question, IAALS now offers this new toolkit for state court judges, which pulls together some of the best resources available. Whether you are an expert or a novice with e-discovery issues, this collection of resources will be useful in your cases.

Thanks to a working group of judges and lawyers, California's Administrative Office of the Courts now offers a required course on judicial ethics for incumbent judges and attorney challengers running for judicial office. Judicial candidates must complete the course within 60 days of filing for office, creating a campaign committee, or receiving a campaign contribution.

Recent efforts to alter the process for selecting Kansas' appellate judges have been covered frequently of late. Supporters of increased funding for public schools are concerned about the impact this effort may have on a school finance case that is currently before the supreme court. Specifically, they worry that Governor Brownback and conservative legislators may be pushing selection changes to "put the court on notice."

Chad C. Schmucker, former state court administrator and circuit judge of Jackson County, Michigan, will become the 8th president of the National Judicial College in 2014. As president, he will work to provide innovative judicial education and improve the competency of judges across the nation. Judge Schmucker’s dedication to case management and court efficiency will certainly be a hallmark of his National Judicial College presidency.

At a recent public forum, Ohio's three newest supreme court justices discussed the threat posed to state courts by significant turnover on the bench. Over the next six years, four of the high court's seven justices—along with approximately 100 judges statewide—will reach retirement age. Justice Sharon Kennedy acknowledged that change of this magnitude could lead to questions about the stability of state laws and their application.

Opponents of commission-based appointment of judges—also known as the Missouri Plan, for the state in which the judicial selection process originated—have obtained approval from the secretary of state for two identically worded proposed constitutional amendments that would establish contested elections for Missouri's appellate judges.

Judge Paul W. Grimm is well known for his contributions in the area of improving the pretrial discovery process, particularly with regard to the discovery of electronically stored information. Judge Grimm’s Discovery Order provides an excellent model for facilitating judicial management, and we recommend it to state and federal court judges alike as a model and inspiration to manage the pretrial discovery process so as to reduce the cost and burden of discovery.

Two retired judges will co-chair a new task force on judicial independence established by the New Jersey Bar Association. The task force will direct its efforts at "current threats to weaken our judiciary." There is longstanding tension between Governor Chris Christie and the legislature when it comes to making judicial appointments, particularly to the state's high court. There is also longstanding tension between the governor and the supreme court, with Christie promising to remake the court after unfavorable rulings.

On September 3, the Resource Center for Separating and Divorcing Families at the University of Denver opened its doors to metro-area families. The Center is a model for providing interdisciplinary, out-of-court solutions to separating and divorcing families. This IAALS “out-of-court model” is part of an international trend towards less adversarial separation and divorce processes.

The front lines of electronic discovery are moving beyond the federal courts. In a world where everyone with a smart phone is an ESI custodian, the problems of e-discovery affect all types of litigants in all types of cases. E-discovery has arrived in the state courts, and the problems there are every bit as big, and every bit as complicated, as they are in federal court. On September 19th and 20th, state court judges and e-discovery experts from around the country gathered to discuss the challenges that e-discovery poses for state courts.

In 2012, North Carolina was the only state with contested judicial elections in which voters were provided with performance evaluations of the judicial candidates—both sitting judges and challengers—on their ballot. It is fairly common for bar associations to offer ratings of sitting judges standing for retention or reelection, but this was the first instance of which IAALS is aware where a bar association also evaluated judicial challengers. Since 2012, the NCBA has also offered a voluntary, confidential evaluation program for new judges.

IAALS is very sad to note the passing of Professor Penelope Pether, of Villanova Law School. One of Penny’s areas of scholarship was the theory and practice of judging, and in that context she and I became friends. She had a particular interest in the process of appellate review, and Penny and I presented together on a couple of occasions on the subject of judicial performance evaluation. Penny was also involved with our Educating Tomorrow’s Lawyers Initiative, because she was an innovative legal educator. I will miss her energy, her enthusiasm, and her passion, but know that her legacy will live on.