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| Slow and steady wins the court tech race |
This post includes news about court text messaging in Colorado, a TurboCourt anniversary, nine justice reform programs to review, some free court subject public service announcements, a study on remote hearings costs and benefits, and innovations from the HiiL Demo Day 2022.
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Court Text Message Reminders in Colorado
We learned via an article from the IAALS program at the University of Denver that the Colorado State Senate considered a bill “that would make text-message reminders to criminal and juvenile defendants required by law.”
They further write: “The new bill, introduced January 12, would require the program to provide three reminders to defendants, including one the day before their court appearance. Most importantly, it would make the program opt-out instead of opt-in—hopefully casting a wider net and ensuring people don’t miss important dates, and that courts don’t waste valuable time having to prepare and then re-prepare for hearings.”
TurboCourt Celebrates 20 Years
Our friends sent a note that they are celebrating the 20th-anniversary providing solutions to the courts. Congratulations.
Nine Sites in Rural America Named Seedbeds for Justice Reform
Via the NCSC’s Rural Justice Collaborative project, we found an article that named nine programs of note at: https://thecrimereport.org/2021/11/02/nine-sites-in-rural-america-named-seedbeds-for-justice-reform/
Free PSA’s Your Court Can Use from Danielle and Zach
https://www.ncsc.org/newsroom/public-health-emergency/tiny-chats
NCSC's Tiny Chaters, Danielle, and Zach review five public service announcement animations your court can use to inform users about legal information v. advice, small claims court, coming to court on your own, motions, and legal language. They are available to you for free (the download link is provided) with subtitles translated into 11 common languages! Join them at the movies and see which controversial PSA they don't recommend you use.
Study Finds Remote Hearings Take Longer, but Improve Access
A December 2021 report is the first national review of data from courts in Texas that confirms what judges have anecdotally shared about remote hearings before and during the pandemic. The 12-month study analyzed both 1.25 million minutes of judicial data and focus group feedback from judges and court leaders in eight counties. The NCSC study, supported with funding from the State Justice Institute, found that remote proceedings take about a third longer than in-person hearings largely due to technology-related issues and lack of preparation by participants. But the study also found that remote proceedings take longer because they increase access to justice, as litigants can more easily attend and participate in hearings.
HiiL Demo Day 2022 Showcases Innovations in Justice Delivery
They write: “Sixteen startups representing seven countries from Africa, the Middle East and Europe took part in this year’s edition. They pitched their game-changing justice innovations to a panel of judges in a bid to win the top three cash prizes of €20,000, €10,000 and €5,000.
This year’s top prize went to THR Media, a social enterprise using new media and technology solutions to help women and girls break free, find shelter and recover from Sexual and Gender-Based Violence. They wowed the judges with their justice innovation addressing “a real and present danger of our times.” Second and third place went to Civitas (Tunisia) and Legal Ascend (South Africa). They were awarded €10,000 and €5,000, respectively.”
It was great to see the presentations and open my mind to new solutions to justice problems.
Click here for the full recap and more...
In my honest opinion, text message reminders should be common practice and not require legislation yet the real challenge is capturing the cellphone number of parties and maintaining the information current and updated.
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