News & Updates

Last month, it was announced that reforms to Canada’s Divorce Act will be delayed due to COVID-19, highlighting just how important it is that courts prepare for this and other types of possible disasters. There are a number of practical steps courts must take now in order to meet people’s needs in a world where going to a physical courthouse is even more difficult—and dangerous.

The legacy of racism that blights our criminal justice system also creates inequities in our society more broadly. IAALS joins others in this process of listening, reflecting, and recommitting ourselves to the goals of equity and inclusion, because they are central to our vision of a justice system that works for all people.

For the second year in a row, Ohio is on track to make significant amendments to its Rules of Civil Procedure and to pilot a second civil justice case management reform project. These amendments align with national recommendations for reform and reflect similar reforms made in Idaho, Maine, Missouri, and Texas.

Earlier this month, the Civil Justice Council in England and Wales published a report on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on civil court users. The report includes results from the council's rapid review of remote hearings, which was conducted to assess what is and isn’t working, as well as how to best move forward.

My recent experience with the civil justice system—even pre-COVID-19—has been frustrating, to say the least. Through it all, though, my journey through the system has given me a more personal perspective on the importance of our work at IAALS and helping the real users of our system—like me—have better and more efficient access to justice.

Courts are faced with the task of balancing the public’s need for an efficient justice system with everyone’s health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Online dispute resolution, along with a host of other approaches, will likely play a role in tackling the post-pandemic demand for legal services.

While the pandemic's disruption increases the need for systemic improvements, it also offers a distinct opportunity to achieve them. As we respond to COVID-19, we should learn from the new efforts underway and work to make long-term, fundamental changes. Let’s seize this opportunity to make the changes we need to provide justice we can believe in.

This month, The Pew Charitable Trusts released a new report that looks at trends in debt collection lawsuits in the United States and suggests steps that courts can take to modernize our state civil justice system and ensure access to justice. The economic impacts of the pandemic make these recommendations all the more critical and timely.

IAALS has launched a new project to help courts more quickly resolve the anticipated wave of business interruption insurance cases stemming from COVID-19-related closures and losses. The project will develop pattern discovery protocols specific to these cases, in an effort to reduce conflict and cost and to help both businesses and insurers alike reach a quick resolution.

In a recent article, IAALS Board of Advisors Member Jeremy Fogel challenges federal courts to use the data and information gathered through COVID-19-related emergency measures to evaluate and implement more modern court processes going forward. The federal courts’ remote technology response is unprecedented in its history, and they have a unique opportunity to seize on this change.

IAALS and the NCSC have finalized a three-year project with the release of their new report highlighting the experiences of four states—Idaho, Maine, Missouri, and Texas—as they worked to implement change in their courts. The recommendations can provide critical support to courts facing unprecedented need for change during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Courts, judges, and lawyers have demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt to a remote and technology-driven version of our justice system in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes have fundamentally altered the way the system operates and call for a renewed commitment to civility and collegiality across the legal profession.

On April 10, the State Justice Institute hosted a webinar to launch its new Funding Toolkit for State Courts and Justice System Partners. The toolkit is designed to support courts and their partners as they pursue federal and philanthropic funding opportunities, and includes resources that cover the entire grant-seeking writing and management process.

The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules met virtually on April 1 and covered a number of different updates and discussion topics, including proposed amendments to Rule 30(b)(6). And, instead of the usual legislative update, Judge Bates provided an update on recent pandemic-related events related to the Committee. 

New Mexico is one of the latest states to look to regulatory innovation to increase access to legal services. On January 24, the state supreme court approved a number of recommendations, including enlisting nonlawyer court navigators to assist self-represented litigants in navigating the system. 

Courts across the country continue to exhibit incredible flexibility in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that shelter-in-place and stay-at-home orders have been enacted in many parts of the country, judges and lawyers alike are looking for ways to keep court cases and processes moving. 

The United States of America leads the world in many areas of democracy, technology, economy, and culture, but what holds back American citizens from accessing justice when they need it? In times of extreme uncertainty, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic, this is a critical question.

In January, the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts' Family Court Review published an article highlighting the key takeaways, proposals, and results from last spring's Plain and Simple: Making the Legal System Accessible to All conference. The conference was directed at the immense need for plain language and simplification reform efforts, and was co-sponsored by IAALS.

Imagine a legal sector neatly divided into two groups: the Rule Makers and the Risk Takers. With evidence piling up that the legal market is not working for ordinary citizens, the Rule Makers come together to evaluate possible changes. After the new rules are enacted, the burden shifts to the Risk Takers to build out workable solutions.

The ABA has created a task force to identify legal needs arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and to make recommendations to address them. Meanwhile, state and federal courts continue to rapidly respond to the impacts of the virus.