News & Updates

The ABA Journal reports that a South Florida judge has approved an out-of-court settlement allowing three people—two women and the gay man they used as a sperm donor—to be listed as parents on a 23-month-old girl's birth certificate. While the two women will have sole parental rights and custody of their daughter, the settlement also gives the sperm donor visitation rights twice a week.

Judge Kevin Burke holds Newt Gingrich's claim that "President Thomas Jefferson abolished over half the federal judgeships" to historical scrutiny.

In August 2016, the Conference of Chief Justices’ Civil Justice Improvements Committee released—and the Conference adopted—Call to Action: Achieving Civil Justice for All, outlining a comprehensive set of recommendations for civil justice reform. The Committee charge was limited to civil cases, and the National Center for State Courts recently launched a corollary project to explore domestic relations cases. The Family Justice Initiative is a partnership between IAALS, the Conference of Chief Justices, the Conference of State Court Administrators, and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges—with support from the State Justice Institute.

While advancements in technology have made marrying over the internet a reality, they have made the divorce process easier as well. Technology-assisted divorce breaks the divorce process down into easily managed and discrete steps, designed to avoid messy court battles. For example, the service Wevorce walks a family through all the steps, including the legal, financial, and emotional components of the divorce process.

A second supreme court justice announced plans to not seek reelection when his term expires in 2012. Chief Justice Paul De Muniz announced his retirement intentions in October.

America’s civil justice system is failing to deliver on the promise of a just, speedy, and inexpensive resolution in every case. However, by taking charge of cases from their beginning to end, courts have the power to change that. IAALS’ latest report, Redefining Case Management, offers strategies to help the courts take charge of the delivery of justice in response to the changing landscape in our courts.

On March 7, 2013, Chief Justice Jean Hoefer Toal entered an Administrative Order recognizing the successful ad hoc use of a Fast Track jury trial process in South Carolina and implementing the voluntary process statewide. The Court also adopted Rules and Procedures for the Fast Track jury trial process, which apply in the absence of agreement of counsel otherwise.

October was a record-setting month for Senate confirmation of federal judicial nominees. The fifteen confirmed judges included two appellate court and thirteen district court nominees. Approximately eighty-five federal court vacancies remain.

The outcomes of the IAALS/ABA Better Access through Unbundling conference include specific directions and recommendations to make unbundling an even more significant way to advance affordable access to legal services. Now is the time to bring stakeholders together, solidify strategic plans, and dedicate resources to the advancement of unbundling.

Two recent appointments to Maryland's court of appeals mark "firsts" in diversity for the state's highest court. Governor Martin O'Malley's elevation of Judge Mary Ellen Barbera to be chief judge would make her the first woman to lead the high court. Shirley M. Watts, whom O'Malley appointed to fill Barbera's vacancy as associate judge, would be the first African-American woman to serve on the court of appeals.

The October 2011 edition of Selection Snapshots is now available.

Our courts face a crisis of access. In a majority of family cases—divorce, separation, and custody issues—at least one party is self-represented. With upwards of 80 to 90 percent of cases involving a self-represented party, it is essential that self-represented litigants can navigate the process and know what to expect at key stages. Partnering with experts around the country, IAALS developed Court Compass as a way to engage court users in brainstorming ways to simplify the family court process.

Last week, during a town hall at Binghamton University, President Obama jumped into the legal education fray when he suggested that law schools could increase the value of a law degree without sacrificing its quality by moving from a three-year program to a two-year program. The two-year/three-year debate has been alive and well in legal education reform circles for some time, but the President’s comments catapulted the conversation into the national spotlight. What do you think?

The Winter 2011 edition of Transparent Courthouse® Quarterly is now available. Transparent Courthouse® Quarterly is a quarterly newsletter reporting highlights from all IAALS initiatives. Sign up for Transparent Courthouse® Quarterly and other IAALS…

This week, IAALS Executive Director Rebecca Love Kourlis and Senior Director Brittany Kauffman have been attending the World Justice Forum at The Hague. The Forum has generated discussion around some of the most pressing legal topics in the world today.

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.

A circuit court judge announced her intention to challenge a court of appeals judge in the Republican primary for the open supreme court seat created by Justice Tom Woodall’s retirement. In announcing her candidacy, she pledged not to accept contributions from political action committees.

Limited legal license programs, such as the one in Washington state that NCSC is beginning to evaluate this month, can effectively contribute to the expansion of the way legal services are delivered. However, their success may be hampered if they are weighed down by excessive limitations and restrictions.

Professor John Lande of the University of Missouri School of Law gives students a realistic and comprehensive perspective on legal negotiation through a semester-long simulated experience in his Negotiation course. Lande describes his course as unique and particularly relevant to the legal profession because he uses multi-layered six-step negotiation hypotheticals to walk students through the entire negotiation process.

New York's Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman has created a task force to identify ways to "better control dockets, manage case flow and make more effective use of non-judicial personnel and alternative dispute resolution within the courts."