Public Notice Detail

ST. PAUL, MN (June 22, 2001) – Today Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen A. Blatz outlined four strategic priorities for the courts in her State of the Judiciary address to the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA).  In her remarks to attorneys at the MSBA’s Annual Convention in St. Paul, Chief Justice Blatz detailed the court system’s plans for the future and discussed the results of a public opinion survey about the courts.

“While we remain as dedicated as ever to resolving cases in a fair and timely manner, we’ve also started to look at more effective ways to serve citizens,” said Chief Justice Blatz.  “As we plan for the future, our focus will be on children and families, providing access to justice, bringing our technology into the twenty-first century and cultivating greater confidence in the courts.”

In her remarks, the Chief Justice described the following priority areas:

Access to Justice – Ensuring the judiciary has the people, resources and information it needs to administer justice effectively and provide the services people depend on.  This includes having enough judges and court staff to keep pace with increasing caseloads;  providing more advocates for children alleged to have been maltreated; boosting the number of qualified court interpreters for non-English speaking Minnesotans; and ensuring adequate compensation to attract and retain qualified judges and court staff.

Technology - Increasing the courts’ technological efficiency and effectiveness by developing a new record-keeping system (Minnesota Court Information System or MNCIS) and working with other criminal justice agencies to integrate information systems statewide (CriMNet).

Children’s Justice Initiative - Improving the handling of child protection cases through a statewide, collaborative effort with the Minnesota Department of Human Services to reform the child protection system and move maltreated children into permanent homes faster.

Public Trust and Confidence – The Chief Justice discussed the results of a Minnesota “Public Opinion of the Courts Study” conducted at the request of the Supreme Court in 1999 and 2000.  Survey questions asked participants about their understanding of court operations, whether the judiciary provides access to all citizens and whether the courts are fair and accountable.

Since the study was conducted, the judiciary has reviewed the results, incorporated approaches from a national action plan released in 2000, and developed specific, statewide strategies for building the public’s confidence in Minnesota’s judiciary.  Many of these strategies are already underway.

According to the survey, about three-quarters of survey respondents said they have confidence in the court system and most believe that judges are fair, qualified and treat people with respect.  More than three-quarters of respondents said they believe that the courts protect people’s constitutional rights and that juries are representative of the communities in which they live.  However, many respondents believed that the courts can be difficult to use, litigation can be costly and court processes can take too long.  They feel the courts are least capable of handling delinquency, family and child protection cases.  In addition, both white respondents and those of color are concerned about the courts’ treatment of minorities, the poor and those who don’t speak English.

Strategies to improve the public’s trust include implementation of the courts’ strategic priority areas and:

• The statewide collection of race data in Minnesota’s courts; ensuring the elimination of race bias remains a top priority for the judiciary through the work of the Multicultural Task Force; and expanding court outreach to more communities of color.
• Making the court system easier to use by translating court forms into easy-to-understand language and providing them on the public web site; exploring ways to improve citizens’ jury service experience; and providing user-friendly service to litigants who represent themselves in court.
• Improving citizens’ understanding of the court system through expanded judicial outreach to schools, public events and community organizations.

“The public’s support and establishing clear priorities for the court system’s future will help us focus on our most important challenges in the years ahead,” said Chief Justice Blatz.

Copies of the “Public Opinion of the Courts Study,” a description of court system strategies for increasing public trust and confidence, and “Focus on the Future,” a copy of the judiciary’s strategic plan, can be found at www.courts.state.mn.us.