Is information technology an integral part of your court business environment, or is it a peripheral activity, almost a veneer? This important issue was covered recently by my favorite tech publication, TechRepublic.

I can’t resist a small diversion before we dive into this matter … I was a regular viewer of the old Frasier TV comedy starring Kelsey Grammer. The comic tension between upper crust Frasier and his brother Niles, with their blue collar father, Marty, served as endless fodder for jokes and madcap adventure. However, in one episode, they found remarkable common ground in sharing an affinity for the PBS series Antiques Roadshow. They watched one of the shows together as a family and made a drinking game of it with Frasier and Niles sipping their port and sherry, and Marty quaffing his Ballantine’s Beer every time the announcer or appraiser said the word veneer. But I digress …

So why do we sometimes treat technology solutions as a means to gloss over more deep rooted problems? According to TechRepublic: It is usually easier and cheaper in the short term. It’s easier since we can apply a veneer to a problem, see that the outward appearance is much improved, and then move on to the next challenge, and it’s obviously less expensive than addressing the fundamental structural problem that lies beneath the veneer … The long-term result of this is what an acquaintance elegantly referred to as OO + NT = EOO (Old Organization + New Technology = Expensive Old Organization).

While some court problems are well served by quick tech solutions, most benefit from a more comprehensive approach that:

Brings management and IT together to identify real-life business problems.

Makes sure that user representatives (judges, staff, clerks, etc.) actively participate in problem identification and solutions.

Looks at deep rooted change in the form of process reengineering to address systemic and transformational change.

Applies technology after these efforts, and when it makes sense from the perspective of return on investment.

Technology is the enabler that will make our courts more manageable and cost efficient. However, it cannot be applied successfully in the long term as a cover-up to deeper organizational problems.

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As a veteran business road warrior, I have relied heavily in the past on Kinko’s for my traveling technology and print needs. The corporate takeover by Federal Express (now called Fedex Office) has only improved the technology and physical presence of this valuable service. However, a recent trip to Illinois impressed me so much that I had to write about it as a living example of how technology has and will continue to change court service delivery.

First of all, Fedex Office encourages online printing with the choice to name the store where you will pick up the end product, or where you would like the stuff shipped. It’s a court version of e-filing that demonstrates the ease and customization that can be achieved with careful programming.

Next, these guys really understand the do-it-yourself mentality by making in-person computer workstations and laptop docking stations readily available for the prep work that is sometimes necessary when tackling a major print job. To this end, I went into the Fedex Office, moved the files I needed to copy from my laptop onto a thumb drive, rented a computer station and printed them out (some in color and some in B&W). After logging off, I then looked for the color copier to print my color stuff and a B&W copier for the others.

To my surprise:

1. I could chose to use one copier and select my choice of color or B&W and be charged accordingly. Sweet.

2. One printing option was to print directly off the thumb drive. I wish I had notice this earlier, but that’s my fault.

3. The final shocker was the option to print directly from my Blackberry smart phone … huh?

Not impressed? The options include printing from a remote location (say, from the airport), choosing the store to pick up your order, and then arriving with a job # that you simply enter into a copy machine and print (which then allows customization such a stapling, double sided, etc.)

Wow !!! Think about the possibilities for e-filing, jury service, payment of court fines/fees, submission of proof of completion documentation, etc.

It’s coming people, and we best get prepared. The customers using features such as these at Fedex Office are also walking through our courthouse doors. They will soon expect the same sophisticated electronic handshakes and options from us.

I’m writing an article on technology trends for the next NCSC Trends Report and I’d like to hear from you about where these expanded technologies will take us. It’s better to be prepared than to wait for it to happen to us.

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Leave it to the Justice Management Institute to find an unmet court management niche and fill it with a practical solution. This one involves the establishment of a new network where various Criminal Justice Coordinating Committees can share successes and collaborate on problem solving.

Here is the full text of their announcement:

JMI Launches the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Network

JMI, along with the Pretrial Justice Institute, and the National Association of Counties is pleased to launch the first ever national network of local criminal justice coordinating councils (CJCC). The project is designed to strengthen the ability of local policymakers to improve local level criminal justice planning and policy development by providing a forum for discussing common issues and concerns, sharing information about strategies for overcoming challenges facing local justice system, and facilitating a learning exchange on promising and evidence-based practices. Major activities and planned deliverables include network meetings, reports and articles on common challenges and strategies for overcoming them, webinars, a listserv, and policy guides on the development and implementation of effective public policy for local criminal justice systems.

Jurisdictions interested in receiving updates about products from the CJCC Network should email contact information to Elaine Borakove at enugent@jmijustice.org to be added to the electronic mailing list.

Users can also sign-up online.

An appropriate governance structure is a crucial foundation to a well-run criminal justice system. Too many decisions must be made that affect too many players to leave these matters to local politics or gamesmanship. Moreover, the funding authority (or authorities) needs to sit at the table to hear first-hand how, for instance, the addition of one $70,000/year lab technician could make the difference between an overcrowded jail or early case disposition.

To be sure, there are many worthwhile programs and models that have come out of these coordinating committees. It would be a shame not to share these solutions with others.

So kudos, JMI … and good job on your redesigned website and logo !!

Photo credit = Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Mustang Daily blog

A private sector colleague recently asked my take on what priorities occupy court administrators and court managers when they first show up in the morning. The purpose of this exercise is to develop a management information tool that would enable a court administrator to get an instant take on typical trouble spots so they could devote attention elsewhere if needed.

Here is my reply …

1) DAY OF THE WEEK - in most of the courts where I’ve worked as a court administrator or manager, the crisis du jour was driven by what day of the week it was. Mondays pushed last day criminal cases to my front burner, while Tuesdays pushed jury issues to the forefront (because of new juror orientation day). Depending upon the size of the court, days-of-the-week may also affect calendar case types such as probate on the last Wednesday or juvenile dependency on Thursdays and Fridays. More and more, we are seeing mental health court, homeless court and even drug court set on specific days of the week or month, all of which have the potential to drive crisis management priorities.

2) PERSONNEL - notwithstanding #1, it seems that every day has personnel issues as a first or second priority. How many staff called in sick, did all the judges show up, do we have enough interpreters or reporters, etc.?

3) COURTROOM CALENDARS - somewhere in my top three priorities was the current state of the individual courtroom calendars. Even if there is dedicated staff to these tasks, it is always a good idea to check in and determine whether cases need to be shifted from courtroom to courtroom. Even if this was not a fire YOU had to put out personally, it is a high judge priority and you appear out of touch if you were not aware of calendar hiccups on a particular day.

4) END OF MONTH - while the day-to-day (and even hour-to-hour) game is important, it is more important (in my view) to set aside some contemplation time at the end of the month, six-months and one year to go over trends and performance data.

Finally, it is said that management is a series of interruptions, interrupted by interruptions. That is to say you may have a default set of priorities when you first walk in the door, but they can quickly shift depending upon interruptions and the need for intervention. This phenomenon is difficult if not impossible to capture in some standardized management information scheme.

So, what is YOUR morning ritual? Do you have a different take on this to help my colleague develop a software tool that will make your job easier?

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What better time than the New Year to commit to some resolutions to make the upcoming year all the better? Here goes …

Better organized

I know the tools, tips and tricks to become better organized, now all I have to do is use them. Actually, I do use them, only I need to use them more consistently.

Software and gadgets

Using task lists, reminders, calendars and internals notes will make anyone more effective. If you’re a Microsoft user, Outlook works just fine for these chores. If not, look for product reviews of other “personal information management” software to track what it is you are supposed to be doing instead of surfing Facebook or just goofing off. While I am not a fan of tech gadgets unless there is a good case for them, I vow to upgrade from a Blackberry to an Android smart phone to take advantage of the added boost in productivity and information management.

Write more

I write a lot now, but I need to write more. There are loads of trade publications starved for good material and the exposure very often translates into contracts. Oh yeah, and the material helps to better my profession … yeah, that’s it … better my profession … that’s the ticket.

Telecommute more and travel less

This may be easier said than done, but I pride myself in killing more meetings than I convene. If a meeting is unavoidable, ask whether it is necessary to do it in-person. Whether in-person or using telecommunications, run the meeting properly in order to improve the effectiveness of the effort.

Keep current with technology

This is a business imperative and I will do whatever is needed to stay informed on tech developments and applications generally, but especially in my court management profession.

Personal stuff

Although I had a setback late in 2010 resulting from a fall from my roof, I have been blessed with overall good health and appreciate the value of eating right and exercising. I will keep these up in 2011. However, I have severely slacked in my recreational reading and I intend to remedy the situation in the upcoming year.

What are you doing to buff up in the New Year?

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I have a love/hate relationship with Christmas. On one hand, I like the cool weather, tidings of good cheer, decorations, parties and the child-like wonder of the holiday. On the other hand, the crass commercialization (beginning with decorations and music as early as Halloween), crowds, difficulty traveling and family squabbles can be a pain. As such, I usually don’t get into the zone until Christmas Eve and Christmas day. The clock is now running and the time is nigh.

To all my friends and colleagues, I wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. This is a time to reflect on what has passed and what is to come. Looking behind, I have no regrets and I count my many blessings. Being the eternal optimist, I sense better times ahead.

Cheers and thanks for your many courtesies to me.

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I’m beginning to receive news bulletins purporting to chronicle the biggest tech stories of 2010 affecting general industry. It causes me to ask what are the biggest tech stories of the year affecting courts?

The best place to begin this quest is to examine the top generic tech stories according to TechRepublic.com to see if there are any we can claim for the courts community. They are:

1. IPADS – to be sure, these cool gadgets have taken all public and private sectors by storm and courts are no exception. TechRepublic chooses to look at this from the angle of how Ipads will change laptops, but I think the impact is more ubiquitous.

2. APPLE vs MICROSOFT vs OPEN SOURCE – this seems to me to be an ongoing battle that elicits strong opinions and close tracking, but in my view it is a peripheral issue that begs the larger question of how courts use technology as opposed to who develops it. Like it or not, Microsoft is still the 800 lb gorilla of technology and their Windows 7 release has not hurt that standing.

3. SMART PHONES – while they are bleeding edge and worthy of the list for general industry, I don’t think they are quite ready for prime time in the courts and government sector. I predict 2011 will see more smart phone and smart device attention in the court market as a customer relations management issue.

4. IT PROFESSIONALS vs DEVELOPERS – TR opines that IT professionals were the heroes of recent decades when they helped enable big productivity gains, but that developers will emerge as the new heroes. Given the current state of IT governance in courts, I think the CIOs will remain in the technology driver’s seat for the foreseeable future.

So what’s missing? I think it’s:

5. PROCESS RE-ENGINEERING – Courts are transforming at an alarming rate and technology is at the forefront of efforts to re-engineer the delivery of court services.

Is there something I left out? Feel free to add to this discussion by posting a comment.

Oh, and MERRY CHRISTMAS !!

Photo credit = Jacob Morgan Marketing Blog

The National Center for State Courts once again steps to the forefront to articulate the extent that crushing budgetary cuts impact the courts ability to handle its incoming caseload. The bad news? We are facing the perfect storm of rising caseloads and falling resources.

The source of caseload data is NCSC’s impressive Court Statistics Project, which is worth a visit for no other reason than their cool Interactive Statistics Query tool on their home page that allows the user to customize a statistics search by type, location and population. The CSP is also your source for the annual Examining the Work of State Courts report. I faithfully collected these paper copies for years, but the e-version is much more versatile.

Caseloads are now the highest ever recorded, while budget cuts keep compounding each year into what is expected to be another round of furloughs, court closures, staff layoffs and reduced service hours. In an odd paradox, the current budget crisis is often the cause of the caseload spike.

So what can be done to face this bleak future? Here are a few examples:

1. Re-invent court service delivery through process re-engineering.

2. Track the progress of the 4th Symposium on Court Management in which these issues are explored in depth.

3. Know where to draw the line and what to give up … tactical retreats are necessary in war, as is protecting your assets so you continue to fulfill the core mission. To me this means staggered furloughs instead of outright courthouse closures one or more days per month.

4. Raise revenue in lieu of cuts

5. Leverage technology, especially online court services.

… and while we’re on the subject of technology, I hope to see you at the E-courts conference in Las Vegas for my Tech Trends, Cool and Edgy session at 4pm on Tuesday, December 14. If you’re in attendance, please drop by and say hello.

Photo credit = Matt MacIntire blog

With apologies for ending the title of this posting with a preposition, this is an ideal time to express my deep appreciation for the many blessings in my life.

Let’s start with my profession … I was blessed with a 21 year career as a public sector court manager and 16 year career as a court management consultant. To the many judges and colleagues who helped me as a court administrator, and the terrific customers and colleagues who support me in the private sector, I can only say thank you.

Every profession is enriched by a robust professional organization, and the field of judicial administration is blessed with not only a great National Association for Court Management, but also a wonderful nonprofit think tank in the form of the National Center for State Courts. My association with NACM dates to 1986 and much like any membership, it improves with active involvement. I have enjoyed a productive relationship with NCSC for over 30 years as a consumer of their products and services when I worked in the courts, and as a trusted partner and collaborator as a court consultant; in both roles, I had the joy of teaching a wide variety of disciplines for the Institute for Court Management. My praise for NCSC is endless and hearfelt.

If you are not yet a member, I encourage you to join NACM, and become one of the Friends of the Court by donating annually to support the many worthwhile programs at NCSC.

I would be remiss if I didn’t include FACT as one of the many professional blessings in my life. The Forum for the Advancement of Court Technology is a good resource that is part of NACM and I have had the honor of chairing the organization for five years.

On a personal note, I am grateful for the love of my wife, Elaine, and for my good health. The later was threatened last weekend when I stupidly went onto my roof to clean out the rain gutters. A one story fall gave me only a broken toe, sprained wrist, abrasions and contusions, but could have easily been worse. That was my last trip to the roof and next year I plan to replace the rain gutters with new ones that repel debris – a cheap solution considering the alternatives.

Thank you for reading my blog postings and for occasionally commenting. Much like our annual Top 10 Court Website Awards, I do this as a service to the profession with the hopes of improving our dialogue on important issues.

Now, on to the leftovers !!

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The pressure on courts to raise revenue and cut costs is enormous. Many of the old fixes such as traffic ticket amnesty programs, outsourcing of uncollected debt to collection agencies, deferrals of purchases and unfilled staff vacancies have long since been exhausted. This leaves painfully deep staff cuts, furloughs, branch court closures and reduced service hours as last resorts. But don’t lose hope, there is one more easy fix that could bring in a significant amount of much needed revenue … sell that old uncollected court debt that you have stacked in boxes in the courthouse basement.

What’s the hitch with this get-rich-quick scheme? The only hitch is that there can be no dangling terms attached to the debt, such as completion of a drinking driver treatment program, attendance at AA meetings, completion of probation or other hooks that would keep the payment as being the sole compliance with the court order.

So assuming that there are no “hooks” other than payment of a fine or fee, why NOT sell the old uncollected court debt? Is there a legitimate argument that doing so somehow undermines the integrity of the judicial process? I argue that there is no plausible resistance to this business practice for several reasons …

1) Allowing the court debt to go uncollected undermines the integrity of the court. After all, Trial Court Performance Standard #3.5 addressing Responsibility for Enforcement provides that “the trial court takes appropriate responsibility for the enforcement of its orders.”

2) When a court imposes a fine that one party pays while another ignores, this unequal enforcement erodes public trust and confidence in the judicial system.

3) At the point that a court debt remains uncollected despite internal efforts and even outsourcing to a collection agency, how does writing off that debt or storing it in the basement improve the integrity of the process? This contractor wouldn’t purchase the old debt if they lacked a solid track record of gaining compliance.

What would determine the amount paid for old court debt? It is a combination of factors that affect this amount, including the age and size of the debt, and how much demographic information about the debtor is available (such as social security number, previous addresses and collection efforts to date).

What if the court wants to maintain a safety valve of sorts to recall the sold debt in the event something comes up later in which the court wishes to include it in the decision making process? The contractor will even provide this safeguard to reverse the transaction, assuming that the debt has not already been paid in the interim.

Justice Served is proud to announce our new alliance with Unifund, a leading company in this field with over 20 years of experience and a solid reputation for ethics and accountability. The added bonus is that Unifund also provides collection services at reasonable rates with the same foundation of trustworthiness.

Send me an email or fill in our online request and I am happy to put you on the path to converting old uncollected debt into revenue treasure. The courts win by producing new revenues that reduce further painful budget cuts; the integrity of the court process remains intact by enforcement of court orders; and taxpayers get their money’s worth for funding the courts.

What’s not to like?

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