The Path Forward:

The biggest challenge facing the court system in recent years has been the lack of adequate trial court funding. Beginning with my tenure as president of the Circuit Judges Association, I have focused on building relationships and trust with the legislative leadership and key executive branch personnel. Based on this experience, I will work to effectively advance the trial courts’ needs by: 

• Implementing both short term and long range strategic financial planning, directing resources to sustain the trial courts 

• Updating the judicial resource allocation and support staff metrics to ensure objective and transparent manpower and weighted caseload studies 

• Coordinating with every judge and clerk of each circuit, rural and metropolitan, to focus on addressing individualized financial, infrastructure, and personnel needs 

• Coordinating with all stakeholders to further the judicial branch’s financial and legislative goals 

 

With adequate funds I believe we can modernize the trial courts in transformative ways. I will focus on: 

• Strengthening relationships with our business community to address the high costs and slow pace of litigation, focusing on business’s particularized needs through initiatives like business courts, user-centered case management, and online dispute resolution for account collections cases

• Bolstering our relationship with law enforcement and community leaders and focusing on initiatives to address juvenile and generational crime and recidivism rates

• Developing mental health initiatives with our legislative and executive branch partners to better address its impact on all aspects of the judicial system

• Building stronger relationships within the bench and bar to identify solutions that will better serve the public

• Creating a culture of authenticity and accountability by the trial courts to the public in case management and disposition rates 

 

Finally, the court system is only as good as the people working to serve the public daily. I will:

• Develop highest quality best-practices judicial training through Administrative Office of Court’s (AOC) judicial college, the National Judicial College, and the National Center for State Courts

• Provide adequate training and best practices modeling for all court employees and ensure qualified employees are hired and retained on a financially competitive basis

• Continue to grow technology and modernized software support for the trial courts; implement a structured hardware refresh program; finalize the transition of the main frame to a web-based product; and strengthen cyber-security protocols

• Ensure that all divisions of the AOC focus on providing prompt and substantive responses to the daily needs of the trial court judges, clerks, and staff