NEWS RELEASE
www.ncsconline.org

Contact:
Lorri Montgomery, Communications Manager
The National Center for State Courts
300 Newport Avenue
757.259.1525
lmontgomery@ncsc.dni.us 

NCSC’s Future Trends in State Courts 2004 Released

Williamsburg, VA (Dec. 2, 2004) – The National Center for State Courts recently released its annual 2004 Future Trends in State Courts, which includes an environmental scan as a way to provide a longer-range look to the future to help courts better anticipate and manage change. The report, which aims to stimulate discussion about relevant issues for the courts and possible solutions, is available on the National Center ’s Web site at www.ncsconline.org.

In this edition of the Trends Report, the National Center offers the latest take on what is happening and what the courts need to know. Following are just a few examples of topics included in this year’s report:

• The state of same-sex marriage
• Aggressive driving legislation and the growth of DWI courts
• The growing need for qualified court interpreters
• The effect of mass media and pop culture on juror expectations
• The newest problem-solving courts
• Reaching out to self-represented litigants

Environmental scanning primarily involves trying to understand what issues might take a court beyond its current ways of doing things. A good scan gives the court a wider angle and longer-range view of the future. By looking out farther and anticipating the opportunities or threats that trends might pose, the courts will have greater leverage in shaping their own future.

The National Center for State Courts, founded with the encouragement of Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger, is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the administration of justice by providing leadership, service, and education to the state courts. The National Center carries out this mission through its offices in Williamsburg, Va.,  Washington,  D.C., and Denver, Colo. 

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