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Message from Our Executive Director |
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This week, IAALS is hosting a convening at the Penrose House in Colorado Springs for a small group of judges, attorneys, and scholars from around the country focused on the current challenges of the process associated with motions for summary judgment and motions to dismiss. Our goal will be to identify the challenges, as well as to brainstorm practical solutions that can be employed by the parties and the court to help decrease cost and delay. As with our Unbundling and ETL Conferences last month, our partners are key to our process: together we can forge solutions to the most pressing issues facing the American legal system.
Rebecca Love Kourlis, IAALS Executive Director
November 2017
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Partner Profile: Sheila Hollis of Duane Morris LLP
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IAALS simply would not be what it is without the support of our partners and friends. This month, we profile Sheila Slocum Hollis, Partner at Duane Morris LLP in Washington, DC.
As an international leader in energy law, Sheila has amassed an impressive list of accolades. Yet, through it all, she never forgot her Colorado roots—and when IAALS needed links to the American Bar Association, an AmLaw 100 firm, and to the pulse of the profession, we found all those things in Sheila.
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First-of-its-Kind Study Will Determine What Clients Value in Their Lawyers
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What do clients want from their attorneys? To answer that question, and to help the legal profession understand how to improve the quality and diversity of legal services, IAALS is partnering with Avvo on a new project: “Think Like a Client.”
Avvo helps to connect lawyers and consumers, and features publicly available information such as detailed profiles with background information, reviews, and ratings for 97% of practicing U.S. lawyers in its legal directory—including more than 800,000 client reviews. Through a collaboration with Avvo, IAALS researchers will analyze those reviews to capture the clients’ voice and report out on what it is they are saying.
Read more.
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Commission on Future of California Court System Recommends Innovations
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Over the last three years, California has undertaken an effort to “research and analyze innovative proposals for the justice system of the future.” The work has culminated in a final report, which focuses on practical ways to more effectively adjudicate cases, achieve greater fiscal stability, and use technology to enhance the public’s access to the courts.
The breadth of the report is tremendous, making sweeping recommendations in criminal law, civil law, family law, court administration, and technology. The recommendations align with the recent Recommendations of the Civil Justice Improvements Committee, which were endorsed by the Conference of Chief Justices. Some of the themes in that report include matching resources with the needs of the case, utilizing a three-pathway approach to achieve right-sized case management, modernizing the use of personnel and technology, and ensuring superior access for litigants.
Read more.
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The Topsy Turvy World of North Carolina’s Courts
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At the end of October, the North Carolina Senate created the new Senate Select Committee on Judicial Reform and Redistricting to consider various options for how the state selects judges. The committee’s formation comes after the North Carolina legislature took several steps recently to shake up the state's judicial system.
Back in March, the legislature voted to override the governor’s veto of House Bill 100, which requires North Carolina Superior Court and District Court judges to identify their party affiliation on ballots. More recently, the legislature voted to override the governor's veto of Senate Bill 656, which canceled the state’s judicial primaries next year. GOP lawmakers have also filed Senate Bill 698, which would reduce the term of many judges to two years.
Read more.
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Unbundle Now: Taking Limited Scope Representation Mainstream
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For young legal practitioners, integrating limited scope representation into law school curriculums is a giant step toward increasing awareness and mastery of modern legal practice.
This was the position of the “Unbundling for the Next Generation” panel at the IAALS/ABA Better Access through Unbundling conference last month. Presenters discussed benefits of integrating limited scope representation into clinics and experiential classes, law school incubators, and bar events that target young lawyers, as well as educating court staff to promote referral panels.
The consensus from all panelists was that teaching law students and young attorneys how to successfully unbundle is an important and necessary aspect of promoting greater access to the justice system.
Read more.
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The public’s access to—and trust in—America’s justice system is in peril. In response, IAALS was established eleven years ago as an independent, non-partisan organization charged with strengthening our courts and improving the experience for those seeking justice. Today, the case is made for reform and IAALS is a driving force in:
- Creating better processes for federal and state courts so litigants receive just, speedy, and affordable outcomes.
- Fueling a national conversation about the best way to select and evaluate our judges.
- Collaborating with several of our nation’s law schools to develop better learning outcomes and elevate the concept of the “whole lawyer.”
- Proving there is a better way to divorce and separate: an out-of-court model that results in less disruption for children and more amicable relations between parents.
Americans deserve a legal system that works for them—a system they can trust. By investing in IAALS, you directly impact outcomes for Americans seeking their day in court. Please consider making a generous gift to IAALS today.
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If you have questions about ways to give, need instructions for giving appreciated stock or including IAALS in your will or estate plan, please contact Carol J. Miller, Director of Strategic Partnerships at 303-871-6613 or carol.miller@du.edu. |
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