Four courts awarded grants for civil justice improvements

Williamsburg, Va. (February 21, 2017) – The 22^nd Judicial Court in McHenry County, Illinois, the Maine Judicial Branch, and the Magistrate Court of Fulton County, Georgia, have been selected as demonstration pilot project sites for the Civil Justice Initiative Implementation Plan and will receive grant funding to implement recommendations of the Conference of Chief Justices' (CCJ) Civil Justice Improvements Committee. These jurisdictions join the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida as the four demonstration pilots selected to implement the Committee's 13 recommendations. The award recipients were selected by the steering committee for the Civil Justice Initiative Implementation Plan based on a competitive application process.

The set of 13 recommendations, which were adopted by CCJ and the Conference of State Court Administrators in July 2016, are designed to secure the fair, speedy, and inexpensive resolution of civil cases in state courts. 

The 22^nd Judicial Court is using the grant money to complete a Landscape study of its court with plans to implement all 13 Recommendations. The court will collaborate with the Illinois Supreme Court and its Commission on Access to Justice to modify existing civil rules of procedure. The Maine Judicial Branch is using the grant money to develop and implement civil case pathways in the district and superior courts, and to use those pathways as a linchpin to implement all 13 Recommendations statewide. The Magistrate Court of Fulton County is using the grant money to focus on improving its high volume dockets and increasing convenience to litigants.

The National Center for State Courts, headquartered in Williamsburg, Va., is a nonprofit court reform organization dedicated to improving the administration of justice by providing leadership and service to the state courts. Founded in 1971 by the Conference of Chief Justices and Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger, NCSC provides education, training, technology, management, and research services to the nation’s state courts.