Archive: May 2025
Problem-Solving Courts Today: An Introduction
All courts are inspired by a sense of morality. But “problem-solving courts” and, relatedly, courts with “restorative justice” approaches, are more explicitly imbued by the concept of conscience. Problem-solving courts are […]
Judges Under Siege: Threats, Disinformation, and the Decline of Public Trust in the Judiciary
Judicial and legal leaders to discuss the sources of this growing crisis
Can Judges Help Ease Mass Incarceration?
A scholar considers how judges have contributed to historically high incarceration rates — and how they can help reverse the trend. While the American criminal justice system was once known […]
An “Almost Sacred Responsibility”: The Rule of Law in Times of Peril
Retired Court of Appeals Judge Michael Luttig recently called his fellow members of the bar to action. “We lawyers,” he charged, “are weighted by an almost sacred responsibility” to defend […]
In Daniel’s Name
Daniel Mark Anderl gave his life to protect his parents. Now his parents are making sure his heroic act also protects other judges and their families. In July 2020, an […]
Toward Fairer, Quicker, Cheaper Litigation: A Unified Theory of Civil Case Management
In the year 2000, the California court system created a complex litigation pilot program […]
Trailblazing Chief Justices in the American States
The diversity of the American bench is frequently scrutinized by politicians, journalists, academics, and jurists themselves. This has been particularly true in recent years as the U.S. Supreme Court has […]
Losing Faith: Why Public Trust in the Judiciary Matters
What can judges do about America’s declining trust in public institutions?
Civic Illiteracy and the Rule of Law
The past few years have been a wild ride, and I say that as a former rodeo cowboy. America has endured a confluence of overlapping crises: pandemic, recession, impeachment, social […]
Necessarily Engaged
Read how judges are taking up the call to improve and expand civics education — in schools, in civic organizations, and in courtrooms.