Kentucky Symposium Will Discuss State Court Funding
Want to learn more about how the executive and judicial branches plan to address underfunded courts? The Kentucky Law Journal, with the American Bar Association (ABA) and the National Center for State Courts, will host a symposium this weekend to discuss the practical and constitutional impact of underfunded courts.
State courts are facing crippling budgets cuts nationwide. Last year, 40 states slashed state court funding. In New York, the state court system laid off 500 people. In New Hampshire, the state suspended all civil cases for a year to address overwhelming backlogs in the courts. In California, foster children recently sued the state's judicial council claiming that their constitutional rights were compromised through a lack of state court funding.
In the U.S., 95 percent of all cases are filed in state courts. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Chief Justice John Minton, and American Bar Association President Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III will lead discussions about the impact of underfunded courts on access to justice. Other event speakers include:
- Ohio Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor.
- South Carolina Chief Justice Jean Toal.
- Utah Chief Justice Christine Durham.
- Oregon Chief Justice Paul De Muniz.
- Retired Massachusetts Chief Justice Margaret Marshall.
- Retired Florida Chief Justice Peggy Quince.
- Delaware Associate Justice Jack Jacobs.
- North Carolina Senior Associate Justice Mark Martin.
The schedule for the symposium is available on the University of Kentucky College of Law's website.
The symposium will run from Friday, September 23 through Saturday, September 24 at the University of Kentucky College of Law. For more information, contact Alexandra Buller at Alexandra.Buller@Americanbar.org or 202/662-1508.
Related Resources:
- Underfunding of State Courts Theme of University of Kentucky Symposium (ABA)
- California Budget Cuts: $350 Million Gone from Court Budget (FindLaw's California Case Law blog)
- Judicial Conference Approves Court Filing Fees Increase (FindLaw's Fourth Circuit blog)
- Judicial Conference Adopts Bankruptcy Courtroom Sharing Policy (FindLaw's First Circuit blog)