Judicial Council Meets at State Bar of Georgia
The Judicial Council, chaired by Chief Justice Hugh P. Thompson, met at the State Bar of Georgia Conference Center in Atlanta, Georgia today from 10:00 a.m. to noon to discuss a variety of action items and reports. New members, including Administrative District Judges, newly elected presidents-elect of the trial court councils, and Mr. Patrick T. O’Connor, President of the State Bar of Georgia, were sworn in to the Judicial Council.
Georgia Reflections on Ferguson
The US Department of Justice report on Ferguson, Missouri issued in March 2015 is detailed with civil rights violations involving both the police and city municipal courts. Some of these same issues are highlighted further in a “Forward Through Ferguson” report issued in September 2015 by the Governor of Missouri. Since that time, the leadership of the Georgia Council of Municipal Court Judges and the Judicial Council of Georgia’s Access, Fairness, Public Trust and Confidence Committee are collaborating on a series of events and writings entitled “Georgia Reflections on Ferguson”. The Institute of Continuing Judicial Education is also a partner on these events.
Fulton County’s Business Court is Expanding Services to Gwinnett County
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently approved a revision to the Business Court Division Rule to allow Superior and State Court systems to join Fulton County’s current Business Court Division. The State Bar of Georgia’s Business Court Committee explored numerous options to expand the Business Court Division’s model in the State of Georgia. After consideration of various models, the Committee agreed to a regional expansion approach which allows counties in the Metro Atlanta area to join. Gwinnett State and Superior Court system sought to be the first County to join the newly expanded Metro Atlanta Business Court. This newly developed expansion continues the Business Court Committee vision that businesses throughout the state would have access to a specialized business court to consistently and efficiently resolve complex commercial litigation issues.
Talking to Georgia’s Judges: Judge Richard Slaby
A conversation with the President of the Council of State Court Judges.
Cold Case Project
The Cold Case Project (a quality assurance program of experienced attorneys reviewing children’s case with long stays in foster case) began anew on July 1, 2016 with a new list of children’s cases to be reviewed, also publishing an annual report of 2015 work and presented at the National Association of Council for Children conference in August which was livestreamed and can be viewed here: https://livestream.com/accounts/7043450