News & Updates

In the past few months, there have been encouraging updates in several states aimed at more effectively addressing the legal needs of disaster survivors. Two states—Louisiana and Texas—implemented various tools to help streamline litigation arising from these disasters.

In an age where much of the evidence presented in American courtrooms is never printed or available in a paper format, it is essential that judges understand the unique challenges that electronically stored information creates, both for litigants and the court. In June 2014, IAALS and the NJC co-hosting Fundamentals of E-Discovery for State Court Judges, a free webcast that judges can still access for CLE credit.

The governor asked a judicial nominating commission to submit the name of more than one candidate for a district court judgeship for which only four attorneys applied. All four applicants—two Republicans and two Democrats—are also running for the seat in November. The commission responded by soliciting additional applicants but did not promise to nominate more candidates.

In a recent national survey asking about the importance of 12 characteristics of judges, survey respondents indicated that the public prizes a judge's professional qualities above all others, including political qualities—preferences that have obvious relevance for methods of judicial selection.

IAALS is pleased to announce the release of our final evaluation results for the Colorado Civil Access Pilot Project (CAPP), the state's experiment with new court procedures. As a whole, CAPP has succeeded in achieving many of its intended effects and the evaluation provides a rich source of information for rulemakers and decision-makers around the country.

The judicial commission called for the discipline case against Justice David Prosser to be sent to a panel of three court of appeals judges. The role of such a panel is to recommend to the supreme court what, if any, disciplinary action should be taken, but it is unclear whether the supreme court must call for a panel’s consideration of the case.

As America continues to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, some lawyers are noting an increase in divorce cases. Courts should be prepared to deal with these cases as quickly and efficiently as possible—and something that could aid their efforts is technology.

According to data presented by Russell Wheeler of the Brookings Institution, President Obama has seen a higher judicial confirmation rate (92 percent) after six years in office than did President George W. Bush (84 percent) and President Clinton (89 percent) at this point in their terms. President Obama is also making his mark on the federal courts in terms of diversity. The 305 Obama-nominated judges are the most diverse group ever.

In Michigan, where three of the seven seats on the state supreme court are on the ballot in November, there is much attention focused on its Judicial Selection Task Force's recent recommendations. IAALS Executive Director Rebecca Love Kourlis and Chief Justice Ruth McGregor (Ret. – AZ), Chair of the O'Connor Advisory Committee to the Quality Judges Initiative, testified before this group and participated in a public forum last year.

The State Bar of California’s foray into legal regulatory innovation has a relatively long history, yet its progress will be halted and disregarded unless Governor Newsom stands up to special-interest attorney groups.

Jeffrey Thaler, Visiting Professor and University Counsel at the University of Maine, recently published a paper on Meeting Law Students' Experiential Needs in the Classroom: Building an Administrative Law Practicum Implementing the Revised ABA Standards. Thaler hopes others can use this approach to help students be ready to practice beyond the world of judges and juries.

The National Center for State Courts has released Future Trends in State Courts 2012: Special Focus on Courts and Community, including an article by Judge Kevin S. Burke (a member of our Advisory Board) on "Leadership Without Fear."

This year, the American Bar Association is celebrating Law Day with the theme “Cornerstones of Democracy: Civics, Civility, and Collaboration.” These sentiments are at the heart of IAALS—what we do, how we do it, and why this work is so critical.

IAALS and the American College of Trial Lawyers Task Force on Discovery and Civil Justice’s joint report, Reforming Our Civil Justice System: A Report on Progress & Promise, continues to garner attention at a national level. In its Civil Justice Playbook feature this month, Metropolitan Corporate Counsel features the work of theRule One Initiative and the Task Force.

The three justices who are standing for retention in November have raised nearly $1 million for their campaigns. The bulk of these contributions have come from lawyers and law firms. The justices are prohibited from personally soliciting contributions, so they have appointed campaign committees to act in their behalf.

Oregon has pioneered a new lawyer licensing approach, allowing law school graduates to become licensed to practice law without taking the traditional bar exam. This innovative pathway to licensure was developed with insights from IAALS’ research.

When the Senate went into recess in August it was on pace to set a new record for fewest judicial confirmations within the final two years of a presidential term, a level not seen since the Eisenhower administration. Russell Wheeler, IAALS Board…

A study of the sentencing practices of superior court judges suggests that their elections influence their behavior, with judges handing out stiffer sentences from the time they take the bench to their first election.

Eduardo Gonzalez discusses what drives his passion for access to justice, overcoming systemic challenges in our civil justice system, and what it means to receive the Alli Gerkman Legal Visionary Award.

A wave of new amendments to the federal rules of civil procedure will take effect Tuesday, Dec. 1, sparking cultural and operational changes to the nation’s legal system. Approved last April by the U.S. Supreme Court, the amendments are intended to refocus the legal community on providing a just, speedy, and less expensive resolution in litigation for every case.