News & Updates

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.

IAALS has opened the nomination window for the 2023 Alli Gerkman Legal Visionary Award, which recognizes innovators who have made significant impacts early in their legal careers toward making the American legal system work better for everyone.

The ABA Section of Dispute Resolution has awarded IAALS and the Resource Center for Separating and Divorcing Families the 2015 Lawyer as Problem Solver Award. This honor is bestowed upon individuals and organizations that employ their problem-solving skills to forge creative solutions.

Sixteen of the 22 applicants for a supreme court vacancy are women. Indiana is one of three states without a woman on its high court. This will be Governor Daniels’ third appointment to the five-member court.

IAALS has released a report that includes multiple research-informed recommendations to help standardize a new tier of legal professionals across states, with the goal of increasing the options for accessible and affordable legal help for the public.

In a recent paper, LexisNexis examined a study of legal employers’ perceptions of recent law school graduates. In a survey of 300 hiring partners and senior associates, 95% believed that law students lack key practical skills at the time of hiring…

Three justices of the supreme court of appeals recused themselves from hearing a constitutional challenge to the distribution of matching funds under the state’s pilot public financing program for supreme court races.

IAALS's JPE 2.0 project, launched in 2021, seeks to modernize judicial performance evaluation programs and improve public trust. A survey of 658 judges and subsequent discussions in convenings revealed a holistic view of what is working—and what is not—regarding JPE.

Not all divorces are ugly. Shannon and Chris Neuman, a Canadian couple, recently finalized their divorce in Calgary, Alberta. The final consummation of their divorce: a selfie outside the courthouse. The ex-couple’s selfie is a celebration of the…

A trial court judge who was removed from office on July 31 for ethics violations was one of the top-two vote getters in the August 7 primary election for her seat and will advance to the general election. According to the supreme court, her removal extends only through the end of the year.

Utah's regulatory sandbox might include a new participant: social workers from Utah State University’s Community Justice Advocate Program, which aims to help people dealing with consumer debt. Unlike many similar programs, USU’s would be operated with lawyers in a supporting role.

In the Jefferson County District Courthouse in Golden, Colorado, family law self-represented litigants in court on post-decree matters have a new resource available to them. The Turelli Foundation, formed by retired Judge Richard Turelli and retired…

According to a statewide poll, 47 percent of voters favor retaining the four justices standing for retention in November, while 24 percent oppose their retention and 25 percent are undecided. Poll results also show little residual anger over the supreme court’s 2009 decision recognizing a right to same-sex marriage, which resulted in the retention defeat of three justices in 2010.