Welcome to the California Courts Programs page. This section features Judicial Council programs and activities designed to enhance the quality of justice in California's courts. Below is an alphabetical listing and brief description of each program area. Access and Fairness
The Judicial Council has made access to the judicial system and fairness in the state courts one of its highest priorities. The council's Access and Fairness Advisory Committee addresses fairness issues in the courts related to race, ethnicity, gender, persons with disabilities, and sexual orientation and provides policy direction in these areas.
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) for Civil Cases
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) refers to variety of processes to help resolve disputes without a trial. ADR is usually less formal, less expensive, and less time-consuming than a trial and can give the parties more control over when and how their dispute is resolved. The Judicial Council supports the development and use of successful court ADR programs. Many California courts offer ADR for civil cases, including mediation, settlement conferences, and arbitration.
California Community Justice Project
The California Community Justice Project provides support and assistance to community justice programs in California in an effort to build restorative justice principles in communities. Its mission is to enhance awareness and understanding of community justice principles and practices; facilitate information sharing between existing community justice programs and start-up programs; and facilitate the development of local practices consistent with community justice principles.
Center for Families, Children & the Courts
The Center for Families, Children & the Courts (CFCC) is dedicated to improving the quality of justice and services to meet the diverse needs of children, youth, families, and self-represented litigants in the California courts.
Collaborative Justice Courts
Collaborative justice, or problem-solving, courts have proven to be successful alternatives to traditional case processing that address underlying problems which contribute to criminal activity or other court involvement. Drug-related offenses, juvenile delinquency, domestic violence, and offenses related to problems of homelessness or mental illness are among the areas addressed by these courts. The collaboration of the courts and the justice system with community-based organizations, individual counselors, and public agencies has resulted in programs that have reduced recidivism, lowered crime and rebuilt lives among the courts’ participants.
Court and Community Collaboration
The goal of the Court and Community Collaboration project is to improve the courts' ability to maximize resources, meet increasing demands, and improve public confidence. The project focuses on two areas-community-focused court planning and court-community outreach and education.
Court Construction
The mission of Office of Court Construction and Management is to enhance the administration of justice by providing responsible and efficient professional stewardship of California's court facilities; to promote excellence in the built environment in support of equal access to justice; and to provide leadership in the design and management of judicial architecture.
Court Interpreters
The Court Interpreters Program (CIP) seeks to improve court interpreter services and administration to ensure that courts provide qualified interpreters to deaf, hard-of-hearing, and non-English-speaking persons. The services provided by this program extend to spoken and sign language interpreter recruitment, certification, education, and discipline.
E-Filing
Using technology to enhance the quality of justice by improving the ability of the judicial branch to collect, analyze, process, and share information is a key goal for the Judicial Council. Learn about statewide electronic filing pilot projects in the courts as well as current e-filing technologies and standards on this comprehensive site.
Equal Access
The Equal Access Project works to assist courts to meet the needs of self-represented litigants. The project makes available materials for courts, court-based self-help programs, and other nonprofit providers of legal self-help services. Materials include sample instructional handouts developed by local courts, as well as translations, brochures, program models, evaluation tools, and ideas for setting up self-help centers.
Judicial Administration Fellowship Program
The Judicial Administration Fellowship Program is an 11-month program administered by the Center for California Studies at California State University, Sacramento (CSUS), and co-sponsored by the Judicial Council. This fellowship places ten fellows throughout California in positions in Superior and Appellate Courts, the Supreme Court, and various divisions in the Administrative Office of the Courts. In addition to working full-time in their placements, fellows are enrolled as graduate students in Public Administration at CSUS and attend regularly scheduled academic seminars. The fellowship is open to all people with a college degree, including recent graduates and mid-career applicants. More information about the program such as applications, brochures, benefits, and stipend is available at: http://www.csus.edu/calst/judicial/
Jury Improvement
The Jury Improvement Program seeks to promote, monitor, and coordinate efficient and effective jury administration and management policies and practices designed to improve California's jury system.
JusticeCorps
The California JusticeCorps Program recruits and trains diverse university students to support overburdened court and legal aid staff who are assisting self-represented litigants in court-based self-help programs in select locations throughout California.
Kleps/Court Innovations
Ralph N. Kleps Awards for Improvement in the Administration of the Courts recognize and celebrate the contributions made by individual courts to the administration of justice in California.
Procedural Fairness in the California Courts
A statewide initiative aimed at ensuring fair process for and quality treatment of court users, resulting in higher trust and confidence in California's courts.
