Procedural Fairness

Procedural fairness continues to be an area of great importance in the landscape of efforts to improve civil justice. The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) recently produced four informative training videos that explore how procedural-fairness principles can be applied in difficult situations often encountered in the courtroom and the clerk’s office.

Judges are the linchpin of the court system—the piece that that holds the wheels on. When a judge is engaged, attentive, and dedicated to assuring that each litigant gets the best the system can offer, then the process moves smoothly. When a judge is overworked, out of touch, or unprepared, then the wheels fall off.