January 2025

Happy New Year Courts Journal Readers,

The 2025 legislative session opened on Monday, January 13th, with a snow day on the preceding Friday and a second snow day the following week. The State of the State address by Governor Kemp occurred on January 16th and the State of the Judiciary address, given by Chief Justice Boggs, took place on January 28th.  Please read this inspiring interview with the Chief Justice by Mercer University.  We have new legislative interns at the AOC, and we enjoyed our interview with their boss—AOC Policy Analyst Robby Lee.  The Judicial Council Standing Committee on Legislation meets weekly at this time of year, and you may keep tabs on legislation of significance to Georgia’s judicial branch by using our bill tracker and reading weekly legislative reports at georgiacourts.gov/legislation/. The Judicial Council/AOC’s Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2024 has been published and is online here until April 1, 2025, and may also be found in our archive of Annual Reports.

Chief Justice Boggs delivered his 3rd State of the Judiciary Address on January 28.
FY24 Judicial Council of Georgia/AOC Annual Report.
Legislative interns Amanda Bock and Addison Hogan.

A portrait unveiling ceremony for former Chief Justice Melton was livestreamed from the Nathan Deal Judicial Center with the perfect dose of poignancy and humor.  Our own Grant Programs Administrator, Paula Myrick, was wonderfully profiled by GCCA.  We were inspired by the recent AJC article featuring Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram’s “competency docket,” through which she meets regularly with mental health professionals, prosecutors, and defense attorneys to connect defendants, most of whom are in jail, with treatment and mental health services to get their cases resolved sooner.  We loved Judge McCord’s profile by his alma mater, University of South Carolina, where we learned more about his amazing musical talents and the scholarship named for his mother.  We also enjoyed the interview with Spalding County State Court Judge Thacker about his annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day tradition—taking the Harvard Implicit Association Test. 

Former Chief Justice Harold Melton’s portrait unveiling.
Judge Shukura Ingram was featured in the AJC.
Chief Judge Matthew McCord was featured by the University of South Carolina.
Judge Josh W. Thacker was featured in the Daily Report.

Thank you Clayton County Chief Magistrate Court Judge Keisha Wright Hill for such a positive, uplifting message at our All Staff Meeting. The Georgia Case Management System Project kick-off event was exciting and held at the Atlanta office of our partners for this project—Amazon Web Services and Slalom Atlanta.  The Judicial Council Committees on Technology, Court Interpreters, and the Board of Court Reporting met this month.  The Council of Superior Court Judges held a successful educational conference with a brief snow interruption.  Our Justice for Children/Court Improvement Program Director, Diana Rugh Johnson, presented child welfare data specific to Fulton County Juvenile Court to help that court frame its 2025 improvement goals.  Please reserve Friday, February 21st for the  Georgia Bar, Media, and Judiciary Conference and please share our 2025 Law Day Art Contest flyer far and wide to Georgia students.  The deadline to enter that contest is April 1st. Also, the nomination period for the Chief Justice P. Harris Hines Award for excellence in the field of child welfare is now open. 

The Georgia Case Management System Kickoff Meeting.
Judge Keisha Wright Hill speaking at the Judicial Council of Georgia/AOC All Staff Meeting
The Georgia Bar, Media, and Judiciary Conference.
The 2025 Law Day Art Contest.

Condolences to the families of Judge Stephen Yekel, Judge Reuben Green, Judge Martha Christian and Chief Judge Rusty Smith who passed away recently and thank you Judge Leonard for your moving post about Judge Green.  We leave you with a request from Chief Judge Cynthia Adams of the Douglas Judicial Circuit who is leading Robes Reading Across Georgia 2025—an initiative that links Georgia Judges willing to read to elementary school students with schools all over the state.  As an avid reader herself, Chief Judge Adams believes that reading to our children can change the trajectory of their lives.  This year’s events will take place the week of March 3rd.   If you are interested in participating, please email RobesReading@gmail.com and provide your name, your assistant’s name, and the best email to contact you and your assistant.  Chief Judge Adams and her team will take care of the rest. 

Robes Reading Across Georgia.

Call on us anytime.  Talk to you in February.

Your JC/AOC Courts Journal team:  Michelle Barclay, Noelle Lagueux-Alvarez, Bruce Shaw, and our contractor, John Ramspott