NCSC launches Court Backlog Reduction Simulator
Courts working through case backlogs now have a new resource at their disposal. NCSC has launched a Court Backlog Reduction Simulator to help courts assess active pending caseloads, identify backlogs, brainstorm possible solutions, and make policy and practice changes to improve case processing.
“We know courts need resources to identify case backlogs. This tool is great because it allows courts to simulate the impacts of hypothetical interventions on future court backlog,” said NCSC Principal Court Management Consultant Nora Sydow. “We spent a lot of time working with courts to refine and test the simulator. We also wanted to make sure it’s user-friendly and applicable to all case types. It’s also becoming a useful collaboration and communication tool for courts as they work with justice partners to address their backlogs.”
To get started, a user creates an account and enters historical caseload data and intervention data to generate the simulator’s results. Recommendations may include interventions ranging from additional bench time to hearing notice reminders, depending on where the backlog occurs.
The simulator also draws on the number of pending cases and past filing and disposition trends to forecast pending cases to help identify targets for change and estimate how interventions may impact monthly case processing.
To help you better understand backlogs, the Conference of Chief Justices and Conference of State Court Administrators Rapid Response Team invite you to participate in a workshop series on backlog reduction on September 8. During this first webinar, Backlog 101, NCSC staff will explain backlog basics and prepare attendees for a Launch of Court Backlog Reduction Simulator webinar on September 19.
Whether you have tried to target backlog issues in the past or are just beginning to address these issues, you will not be disappointed with the Court Backlog Reduction Simulator and upcoming workshop series.
2023 Trends in State Courts abstracts due October 17
A project led by NCSC’s Knowledge and Information Services division, Trends in State Courts is an annual, peer-reviewed publication that highlights innovative practices in critical areas that are of interest to courts, and often serves as a guide for developing new initiatives and programs and informing and supporting policy decisions. Editors are currently accepting 500-word abstracts for the 2023 publication.