2002 Annual Report

Federal Judicial Center

Federal Judicial Center

Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building

One Columbus Circle, N.E.

Washington DC 20002-8003

www.fjc.gov
A MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR, 1

ABOUT THE FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER, 2

Statutory Mission, 2

Governance, 2

Organization, 3

Coordination Within the Judicial Branch, 3

Staffing and Appropriation, 3

2002 at a Glance, 2

EDUCATION & TRAINING, 4

Education Programs for Judges and Legal Staff, 4

Education and Training Programs for Court Staff, 7

Sentencing and Probation and Pretrial Service Programs, 7

Court Management Programs, 7

Other Court Education Programs, 8

Programs for Foreign Judicial Officials , 9

RESEARCH, 10

Civil Litigation, 10

Criminal Litigation, 10

Courtroom and Litigation Technology, 11

Appellate Litigation, 11

Bankruptcy Litigation, 12

Judicial Resources, 13

Other Research Activities, 13

Federal Judicial History, 13

FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER FOUNDATION, 14

JUDGE JOHN R. BROWN AWARD, 15

ADVISORY COMMITTEES, 16
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 1

A MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

This annual report is an opportunity for interested persons to review the work of the

Federal Judicial Center over the past year. It also creates a permanent record of that

work for future reference. It is also an opportunity for those of us within the Center

to reflect on what we’ve accomplished, both individually and as part of the FJC

family. Because this is my last full year as Director, I have special reason to look back

at our role and to consider how well we’ve fulfilled it.

The Center’s statutory mandate provides the FJC with great opportunity and

great responsibility. Let me mention some of the ways in which we respond. As

educators, we do orientation and continuing education for judges, probation and

pretrial services officers, public defenders, and court managers and their staffs. We

cover issues as diverse as scientific evidence, technology in the courtroom, globalization of law, and leadership and management. Our methods include seminars,

satellite and Web-based training, audiotape and video programs, and manuals and

monographs. As the research arm of the federal courts, we do empirical studies of

court operations, practices and procedures, primarily for committees of the Judicial

Conference, and promote interest in federal judicial history.

The numbers of seminars, of judges and court staff participants, of manuals and

guides, published and unpublished research, and television and video programs

produced reveal a lot—but numbers are only a small part of the story, a superficial

indicator of success. They tell nothing of how those numbers are reached—of who

does the planning, the writing, the producing, the teaching, the creating. They give

no indication of the hours and energy spent by the FJC staff, or of the talent and

dedication of those individuals. I have been privileged during the past few years to

learn the rest of the story—that the credit for the numbers reflected in this report

goes to them.

It has been a pleasure and a privilege to serve as the Director of the 137 people

who are the FJC. Their contribution to the judiciary is invaluable.
2 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

ABOUT THE FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER

Statutory Mission

Congress created the Federal Judicial Center in 1967 as the federal judicial system’s

agency for education and research “to further the development and adoption of

improved judicial administration” in the courts of the United States. This annual

report, mandated by statute, describes the Center’s activities in furtherance of its

statutory duties in calendar year 2002.

Governance

The Chief Justice of the United States chairs the Center’s Board, which also includes

two circuit judges, three district judges, one bankruptcy judge, and one magistrate

judge who are elected to four-year terms by the Judicial Conference of the United

States, and the director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts who serves ex

officio. The Board oversees the Center’s activities, and its members serve on standing

committees on education and research and on advisory committees on judicial

education programs.

In March 2002, the Judicial Conference elected Judge Pierre N. Leval of the U.S.

Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to membership on the Board, replacing

Judge Stanley Marcus of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, whose

term expired.

The Board appoints the Center’s director and deputy director; the director

appoints the Center’s staff. All but one of the Center’s eight directors have been

federal judges, including the current director, Judge Fern M. Smith of the U.S.

District Court for the Northern District of California.

2002 at a Glance

In 2002 the Center

• provided 685 educational programs (including educational programs broadcast on

the Federal Judicial Television Network) for some 27,000 federal judge and court staff

participants

• completed 22 major research and evaluation projects, continued work on 23 others,

and responded to many other requests for short-term research assistance

• published or updated 9 reports, manuals, monographs, or reference guides

• broadcast more than 1,700 hours of educational and informational programming

from the Center, the U.S. Sentencing Commission, and the Administrative Office on

the Federal Judicial Television Network

• completed four curriculum packages and training guides

• released two computer-based instructional programs

• distributed almost 75,000 copies of its printed publications, as well as almost 3,500

audio, video, and multimedia programs

• answered nearly 2,000 information requests from judges, court staff, and others

• hosted seminars or briefings for 522 foreign judges and officials representing 81

countries
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 3

Organization

The organizational structure of the Center

reflects its primary statutory mandates. The

Judicial Education and Court Education

divisions plan and produce education and

training programs for judges and court staff,

including seminars, satellite broadcasts, video

programs, educational publications, and

Web resources. The Research Division examines and evaluates current and alternative

federal court practices and policies. This

research not only assists committees of the

Judicial Conference in developing policy

recommendations but also contributes

substantially to educational programs and

products for the judiciary. The three divisions

work closely with two units of the Director’s

office—the Systems Innovation & Development Office and Communications Policy &

Design—in using print, broadcast, and on-line

media to deliver education and training and

to disseminate the results of Center research.

The Federal Judicial History Office, a part of the Research Division, helps courts and

scholars study and preserve federal judicial history. The Interjudicial Affairs Office,

part of the Judicial Education Division, provides information to judicial and legal

officials from foreign countries and assesses how to include developments in international law in the Center’s educational programs for federal judges.

Coordination Within the Judicial Branch

Numerous programs and projects described in this annual report involve coordination, cooperation, and consultation with committees of the Judicial Conference,

with the Administrative Office, and with the

U.S. Sentencing Commission. Advisory

committees of judges, court staff, and others

help in planning and producing education

programs and publications. These committees are listed on page 16.

Staffing and Appropriation

The Center had a fiscal 2002 appropriation

of $20,135,000, and it employed 137 people

at the end of calendar year 2002. Its fiscal

2003 appropriation had not been enacted as

this report went to press.

Board of the Federal Judicial Center, 2002

The Chief Justice of the United States, Chair

Judge Pierre N. Leval, U.S. Court of Appeals for the

Second Circuit

Judge Pauline Newman, U.S. Court of Appeals for the

Federal Circuit

Judge Jean C. Hamilton, U.S. District Court for the

Eastern District of Missouri

Judge Robert J. Bryan, U.S. District Court for the

Western District of Washington

Judge William H. Yohn, Jr., U.S. District Court for the

Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Chief Judge Robert F. Hershner, Jr., U.S. Bankruptcy Court

for the Middle District of Georgia

Magistrate Judge Robert B. Collings, U.S. District Court for

the District of Massachusetts

Leonidas Ralph Mecham, Director of the Administrative

Office of the U.S. Courts

Senior Staff of the Federal Judicial Center

Hon. Fern M. Smith, Director

Russell R. Wheeler, Deputy Director

John S. Cooke, Director, Judicial Education Division

James B. Eaglin, Director, Research Division

Emily Z. Huebner, Director, Court Education Division

Sylvan A. Sobel, Director, Communications Policy & Design

Ted E. Coleman, Chief, Systems Innovation & Development

Mira Gur-Arie, Senior Attorney for Interjudicial Affairs

Bruce A. Ragsdale, Chief, Federal Judicial History Office
4 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

EDUCATION & TRAINING

Some 1,600 federal judge participants, 14,500 court staff participants, and 900

federal defender and staff participants received orientation and continuing education through traditional seminars and local education programs in 2002. (Each

instance of participation by a judge or court employee is included, so some individuals are counted more than once.) In addition, an estimated 10,000 participants

viewed Center broadcasts on the Federal Judicial Television Network (FJTN). (The

Center conducts monthly surveys that use statistical sampling to estimate FJTN

viewership.) Face-to-face conferences, seminars, and workshops continue to be the

primary vehicle for education for federal judges. Most court staff, however, participate in local training events using materials produced by the Center or through

other distance education methods such as on-line conferences and other forms of

computer-based and Web-based training, audioconferences, videoconferences, and

FJTN broadcasts. More than 75% of the estimated 27,000 participants in Center

educational programs received some form of distance education in their own

courts.

Education Programs for Judges and Legal Staff

Programs that judges attend in-person include orientation seminars for newly

appointed judges, periodic national and circuit-based workshops, and small group

seminars devoted to specific topics.

A 2002 national symposium for court of appeals judges—the Center’s first in

seven years—provided updates and analysis on topics including Supreme Court

trends on federalism, the first amendment, and criminal procedure; law and technology; appellate court administration; immigration law; voting rights; habeas

corpus; and employment law. A national continuing education workshop for district

judges examined recent developments in intellectual property, federal jurisdiction,

evidence, electronic discovery, case management, voting rights, genetics, and

international law and terrorism. National workshops for bankruptcy judges included

sessions on powers of bankruptcy courts, evidence, Chapter 11 cases, judicial ethics,

and recent Supreme Court decisions, while national workshops helped magistrate

judges stay current on new rules of criminal procedure and developments in civil

rights litigation, discovery, social security, and habeas corpus. In cooperation with

the Judicial Conference’s Criminal Law Committee, the U.S. Sentencing Commission, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the Center conducted a national sentencing

policy institute for district judges, probation and pretrial services officers, and

federal defenders, plus federal prosecutors and other executive branch officials.

Continuing its long-standing emphasis on leadership and court management,

the Center’s conference for chief district judges, in cooperation with the Administrative Office, emphasized effective stewardship and technology in the courts. Two

executive institutes for chief judges and unit executives (one for bankruptcy courts,
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 5

one for district courts) applied lessons of leadership from President Lincoln’s

experiences during the Civil War to contemporary court management. The Center

also prepared a third edition of its Deskbook for Chief Judges of U.S. District Courts.

Seminars on particular subjects for small groups of judges usually last two or

three days. Special-topic seminars in 2002 concentrated on intellectual property,

employment law, environmental law, and mediation skills. Judges also participated

in the Medina Seminar on the Humanities and Science, conducted with the Judiciary

Leadership Development Council and

Princeton University, and the

“Compleat Appellate Judge” program,

conducted with the ABA Appellate

Judges Conference. Programs for

federal defender personnel and CJA

panel attorneys included a workshop

for defender teams on the use of new

technologies to enhance courtroom

presentations.

FJTN broadcasts augment the

Center’s education programming. One

broadcast, Terrorism and the Law: The

U.S.A. Patriot Act and Military Commissions, analyzed the statutory provisions

and the possible implications of using

military commissions. Other FJTN

programs for judges and legal staff

included the Center’s annual review of the Supreme Court’s term, periodic updates

on bankruptcy law, an orientation for new law clerks, and basics of employment law

for law clerks. An Introduction to the Patent System is an eighteen-minute video, produced with an advisory committee of district judges and patent attorneys, that

judges may show to jurors during preliminary instructions in patent trials to help

explain patents and the patent process. Associations of patent lawyers are duplicating the video and making it available to lawyers and the public.

Judicial and legal education publications released in 2002 were:

• Guideline Sentencing: An Outline of Appellate Case Law on Selected Issues and several

editions of the periodical Guideline Sentencing Update

• Maintaining the Public Trust: Ethics for Federal Judicial Law Clerks (produced in

cooperation with the Judicial Conference Committee on Codes of Conduct

and the Administrative Office)

• Recusal: Analysis of Case Law Under 28 U.S.C. §§ 455 & 144

• Redistricting Litigation: An Overview of Legal, Statistical, and Case Management Issues

The fourth edition of the Manual for Complex Litigation is scheduled for publication in

2003.

Federal Judicial Television Network

In addition to broadcasting Center-produced educational

programs, the Center operates the FJTN to provide educational

and informational programming from the Administrative Office

and the U.S. Sentencing Commission to judges and court staff

at satellite viewing sites in more than 300 federal court locations. In 2002, the FJTN broadcast more than 1,700 hours of

programming, including rebroadcasts. Forty-nine programs

aired live. Center educational programming on the FJTN

consisted of 241 programs. Of these, 28 were live, interactive

programs in which judges and court staff at courthouses

around the country could speak directly with faculty in the

broadcast studio.
6 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

Seminars & Workshops for Judges, January 1–December 31, 2002*

Number of Number of

Programs Participants

Orientations for newly appointed circuit judges 1 7

Orientations for newly appointed district judges 5 99

Orientations for newly appointed bankruptcy judges 3 29

Orientations for newly appointed magistrate judges 3 46

Symposium for circuit judges 1 134

Conference for chief district judges 1 93

Conference for chief bankruptcy judges 1 65

*Workshops for district and circuit judges 2 205

*National workshops for bankruptcy judges 2 180

*National workshops for magistrate judges 2 205

Sentencing Policy Institute 1 84

Special-focus workshops 11 248

In-court seminars 16 233

TOTAL 49 1,628

*The Center offers these programs on an 18-month cycle. Judges may attend one workshop each

cycle.

The Center also conducted 7 programs for 920 federal defenders and staff.

Court Staff Education & Training Programs, January 1—December 31, 2002*

Number of Number of

Seminars and Workshops Programs Participants

Clerks of court and clerk’s office personnel 8 942

Probation and pretrial services officers and personnel 17 1,243

Personnel in several categories 33 2,135

TOTAL 58 4,320

In-Court Programs (programs using Center curriculum packages, Number of Number of

training guides, and computer-assisted instructional programs) Programs Participants

Clerks of court and clerk’s office personnel 168 4,247

Probation and pretrial services officers and personnel 97 3,888

Personnel in several categories 49 1,733

TOTAL 314 9,868

Technology-based Programs (videoconferences, audioconferences, Number of Number of

on-line conferences, but not including FJTN broadcasts) Programs Participants

Clerks of court and clerk’s office personnel 3 143

Probation and pretrial services officers 1 30

Personnel in several categories 12 175

TOTAL 16 348

GRAND TOTAL 388 14,536

*These figures do not include an estimated 10,000 judge and court staff viewers of Center

programs broadcast on the FJTN. The Center also provides Web-based education and training

programs on its site on the judiciary’s intranet, but it does not maintain usage figures for them.

Because some court staff may visit the site but not participate in the program, and others may

download educational programs for use by multiple staff members, discerning the actual number

of users of these programs is impracticable.
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 7

Education & Training Programs for Court Staff

Sentencing and Probation and Pretrial Services Programs

New probation and pretrial services officers attend a five-day national orientation

workshop after completing a Center-developed checklist of activities in their home

districts. In 2002, the Center conducted seven orientation workshops for new

federal officers and one program to prepare experienced probation and pretrial

services personnel to serve as faculty for future new officer workshops.

A national conference for chief probation and pretrial services officers—held

every two years—covered topics such as managing automation, ethics, detention

reduction initiatives, and successful implementation of the new supervision monographs.

Most continuing education programs for probation and pretrial services officers

use distance learning. Two new broadcasts addressed safety in the office and officer

preparation. Another FJTN program helped officers supervise women substance

abusers. New programs in the Special Needs Offenders series on particular offender

and defendant populations examined recent developments in supervision and

treatment of sex offenders and in cyber crime and cyber terrorism. Accompanying

bulletins provided the latest investigation and supervision approaches, job aids,

information about training, and descriptions of practices and innovations. The

Center also released new editions of its training guides on in-district training of new

probation and pretrial services officers and supervisors.

Court Management Programs

Some programs for executives and managers in the federal court system include

teams of judges and court managers, such as the executive institutes (described on

pages 4–5), a workshop for chief district judges and clerks of court on building

effective management teams, and strategic planning programs for teams of district

court judges and court managers and bankruptcy judges and court managers. A

workshop in collaboration with the Administrative Office and the General Services

Administration helped teams of judges, clerks of court, court project managers, and

architects manage capital construction projects. A biennial conference for district

court clerks, deputy clerks, and district court executives featured sessions on managing fiscal and legal responsibilities, developing and supporting court staff, and

instilling public confidence. Other programs for top court managers included an

executive institute for senior court managers and workshops on management

challenges and enhancing leadership and communication skills for district and

bankruptcy court deputies-in-charge and divisional managers.

The Center’s multiyear advanced leadership programs prepare court managers

and probation and pretrial services officers for positions of increasing responsibility.

Participants report that the programs helped them when they sought positions with

more management responsibilities. The American Council on Education has

certified the leadership programs for graduate and undergraduate credit. The third

class in the two-and-a-half-year Federal Court Leadership Program graduated in
8 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

2002. The sixth class in the three-year Leadership Development Program for Probation and Pretrial Services Officers is midway through the program.

Much of the management training in the courts is delivered through Centerproduced curriculum packaged programs, which consist of instructor guides,

participant handouts, overhead slides, and sometimes videotapes, and are taught in

the courts by court staff who are trained by the Center. Examples include a pilot

program introduced in 2002 on strategic planning for information technology and a

training guide to help courts manage the effects on staff of implementing the federal

courts’ new case management/electronic case filing (CM/ECF) system. The Center

also provides faculty to conduct circuit-wide supervisors’ training for appellate,

district, and bankruptcy court and probation and pretrial services managers.

FJTN broadcasts described the proper limits on communications between

judges, settlement judges, and mediators; helped bankruptcy judges, bankruptcy

court clerks and administrators, and probation and pretrial services supervisors

educate the public about the work of

the courts; and helped appellate case

managers process cases. Other

programs concentrated on hiring,

training, and coaching new employees; leading in times of crisis; and

managing staff conflict. Two computer-based on-line conferences for

bankruptcy courtroom deputies

provided techniques for effective

time management.

Other Court Education Programs

Numerous training tools,

downloadable publications, program

schedules, information, and application forms are available on the Center’s Web

page on the courts’ intranet at jnet.fjc.dcn. One Web-based training program

released in 2002 helps court staff enhance their education and career development;

another helps them understand the federal courts and how they work. (That program, Inside the Federal Courts, is also available on the Center’s Internet site at

www.fjc.gov, for the public, students, teachers, and the media.)

Two national workshops, five-session orientation videoconferences, and a

videoconference on planning a court-wide training event all helped in-court training

specialists.

FJTN broadcasts for all staff included programs on confronting crisis, structured

on-the-job training, e-mail usage, making ethical choices, negotiations, and effective

court administration. New editions of Court to Court, the Center’s television magazine, examined techniques for providing efficient customer service, using

videoconferencing to conduct meetings, and training staff for the transition to

CM/ECF.

Media Library

The Center’s media library contains some 3,500 audio and video

programs, including Center-produced educational video programs,

videotapes of Center broadcasts on the FJTN, audiotapes of

seminars and workshops, and some 600 commercially produced

video programs. In 2002, the media library loaned more than 900

copies of programs to federal judges and judicial branch personnel

and sent more than 2,600 copies of its media programs directly to

the courts for them to keep and use in local education and training

programs. Many Center-produced media programs are available to

the public through the National Technical Information Service of

the Department of Commerce.
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 9

Programs for Foreign Judicial Officials

Congress has charged the Center to work with other organizations to provide

information about judicial administration to judicial and legal officials from other

countries, and to gather information about the administration of justice in other

countries that may assist in the Center’s education and research programs for the

federal courts. The Center provides briefings, information, counseling, and technical

assistance, but no direct financial support. The participants, their governments, or

public and private U.S. organizations pay for transportation, lodging, interpreting

services, and other direct costs of these programs.

In 2002, the Center

• coordinated 61 briefings for 522 foreign judges and court officials from 81

countries;

• arranged a two-day seminar for representatives of the Mexican Instituto de la

Judicatura and the Canadian National Judicial Institute, a follow-up to the

September 2001 judicial exchange in Mexico led by the Chief Justice;

• helped coordinate a visit by the Indo-American Judicial Exchange in October;

and

• collaborated with the Center for Russian Leadership at the Library of Congress to develop a series of exchange programs for Russian judges and law

professors. Each delegation is hosted by their American counterparts for a

week of programs, including opportunities to observe court proceedings, law

school classes, and other aspects of the U.S. legal system.

The Center hosted three visiting foreign judicial fellows. A Brazilian labor judge

studied alternative dispute resolution as a case-management tool for appellate

courts, and an Azerbaijani Justice Ministry official and a Chinese judge studied

judicial education. (The Center provides visiting foreign judicial fellows with office

space, use of a computer, access to the library and Center experts, and guidance in

preparing research projects.)

Center staff made presentations and provided technical assistance abroad in

Chile, China, the Czech Republic, the Dominican Republic, Russia, Serbia, Thailand,

and Venezuela. Funding in all cases was provided by other government agencies or

the host countries.
10 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

RESEARCH

The Center conducts empirical and exploratory research on federal judicial processes and court management, mostly at the request of Judicial Conference committees, and makes many of its research reports available in print, on its Web sites, or

both. In 2002, the Center completed 22 research and evaluation projects, continued

work on 23 others, completed 18 reports, and responded to more than 125 informal requests for research assistance from the courts, Judicial Conference committees, federal and state agencies, individuals from academic institutions and associations, and others. Major research activities are described below.

Civil Litigation

The Class Action Subcommittee of the Judicial Conference’s Advisory Committee on

Civil Rules asked for information to help it assess whether two recent Supreme

Court decisions affected the rate and type of class action filings in federal district

courts. Center staff analyzed class actions filed in 82 federal district courts and will

survey 1,500 attorneys who have been involved in class action litigation in state or

federal court. Also at the request of the civil rules committee, the Center is studying

court orders that protect release of information about settlements.

In response to continued requests for information about summary judgment

motions, the Center maintains automated docket data from a sample of 1,650 civil

cases to identify any changes in dispositional outcome (summary judgment and

other dispositive motions) patterns since its 1995 summary judgment study. Center

staff are also collecting information about how

federal courts deal with nonprisoner pro se litigation.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Studies of mediation programs in the Western

District of Missouri, the District of Connecticut,

and the Court of Federal Claims will yield information helpful to all courts concerning the strengths

and weaknesses of various approaches to ADR. A

three-year project (supported by gifts to the

Federal Judicial Center Foundation, see page 14) is

providing technical assistance and reference

materials to ADR administrators in the district courts, including an ADR manual,

model referral orders and other forms, model local rules, guidance for selecting and

training ADR neutrals, and questionnaires for evaluating ADR programs.

Criminal Litigation

The Committee on Court Administration and Case Management asked the Center

to assess the Judicial Conference’s Criminal Case Files Pilot Program. The purpose

of the study is to collect and analyze information about the experiences of the pilot

Information Services

Drawing from a specialized collection of books, journals,

and published and unpublished documents on the work of

the federal courts, the Center serves as a national clearinghouse for information on federal judicial administration.

Last year, it answered nearly 2,000 requests for information from judges and court staff, libraries, government

agencies, academic institutions, research organizations,

bar groups, and the media.
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 11

courts as they provide remote public electronic access to documents filed in criminal

cases. This research will help the committee identify the potential risks and benefits

of providing electronic public access to criminal case files. Project staff are also

studying the experiences of other courts that allowed remote electronic public

access to criminal case files before the Judicial Conference’s pilot program.

Given national interest in offender re-entry programs, the Center (in cooperation

with the Administrative Office) is assisting the District of South Carolina to evaluate

its Re-entry Specialist Program and is helping the Eastern District of Missouri

evaluate its Offender Employment Program.

The Judicial Conference has approved the Center’s Risk Prediction Index (RPI) to

help both probation and pretrial services officers assess the risk of recidivism for

individuals under supervision. The Center is analyzing data from supervision cases to

evaluate the RPI’s continuing validity. The Judicial Conference’s Criminal Law

Committee has also asked the Center to assess the substance abuse and mental

health needs of Native American offenders under federal supervision.

In 2001 the Center completed a manual on managing federal capital death

penalty trials and posted the manual and related materials on its Web site for access

by judges and the public. A similar manual to assist judges with managing capital

habeas trials is being prepared and will also be posted on line.

Courtroom and Litigation Technology

A number of Center research projects are under way to stimulate and encourage

more research and evaluation concerning digital and electronic evidence in the

courtroom and to analyze the effect, if any, of various courtroom technologies on

fact-finding and other aspects of trial processes. These projects include:

• surveying how many courts are using what equipment and with what frequency

• assisting experts at the University of California with the development of a

functioning evidentiary exhibit using immersive virtual environment technology and assessing the use of such exhibits as evidence or as illustrative aids in

trials; and

• analyzing variations among districts and court participants in the perceived

need for and appropriateness of videoconferencing in federal criminal proceedings and the possible impact on trial rights.

Center staff also helped the Discovery Subcommittee of the Advisory Committee

on Civil Rules to examine discovery of information and evidence that exist in digital

form.

Appellate Litigation

The courts of appeals are split on whether to count disqualified judges in calculating

a “majority” for en banc rehearing purposes under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 35(a). The Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules asked the Center to research the positions of the appellate courts and to analyze the pros and cons of

each position as a matter of policy and the merits of having a rule that will require a
12 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

uniform practice among the circuits. The committee has proposed an amendment

to Rule 35(a) to resolve the conflict among the circuits.

Bankruptcy Litigation

The Center organized a January 2003 conference for a small number of judges and

attorneys to clarify the research needed by a subcommittee of the Bankruptcy

Committee on venue and case-management issues in mega-bankruptcy cases that

have multiple filings.

Publications

Center manuals, monographs, and research reports are described throughout this report. The Center

distributed almost 75,000 printed copies of its publications in 2002; many publications that were

formerly distributed in print are now being sent to judges and court staff by e-mail. Many publications

are also available on Center sites on the courts’ intranet (jnet.fjc.dcn) and on the Internet

(www.fjc.gov). Publications released or in production in 2002 were:

• Deskbook for Chief Judges of U.S. District Courts

• Guideline Sentencing: An Outline of Appellate Case Law on Selected Issues

• Inconsistency in Evidentiary Standards for Medical Testimony: Disorder in the Courts, JAMA, vol.

288, no. 11, at 1382 (Sept. 18, 2002)

• Maintaining the Public Trust: Ethics for Federal Judicial Law Clerks

• Order in the Courts: A History of the Federal Court Clerk’s Office

• Past and Potential Uses of Empirical Research in Civil Rulemaking, 77 Notre Dame Law Review

1121 (April 2002)

• Recusal: An Analysis of Case Law Under 28 U.S.C. §§ 455 & 144

• Redistricting Litigation: An Overview of Legal, Statistical, and Case Management Issues

• Statement of Allegations and Reasons in Chief Judge Dismissal Orders Under the Judicial Conduct

and Disability Act of 1980 (available on-line only)

• Statistical Examples Software Prototype: Age Discrimination Example, 42 Jurimetrics 281 (Spring

2002)

A Center periodical, the FJTN Bulletin, describes programs broadcast by the Center, the U.S. Sentencing

Commission, and the Administrative Office and provides broadcast schedules and other news about the

Federal Judicial Television Network. As part of an effort to reduce mass mailings to the courts, the

Bulletin is available only in electronic form on the courts’ national intranet. The Center ceased publication of its Guideline Sentencing Update periodical in 2002, and will instead update its Guideline Sentencing

Outline regularly on-line.

More than 50 Center publications are available on the WESTLAW legal research service. Commercial

publishers reprint several publications for sale to the public, including the Reference Manual on Scientific

Evidence, Second Edition; Manual for Complex Litigation, Third; Guide to Judicial Management of Cases in ADR; and

Chambers Handbook for Judges’ Law Clerks and Secretaries. The manual Effective Use of Courtroom Technology: A

Judge’s Guide to Pretrial and Trial was a joint project of the Center and the National Institute of Trial

Advocacy, which has published a version for attorneys. The Government Printing Office also carries

several Center titles in its public sales program.
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 13

Judicial Resources

Over the past three decades, the Center has conducted extensive research to formulate the statistical case weights for district and bankruptcy courts that the Judicial

Conference uses for a variety of purposes, and in 2002 commenced projects to

create revised district court case weights (for the Judicial Resources Committee) and

revised bankruptcy court case weights (for the Committee on the Administration of

the Bankruptcy System).

Other Research Activities

At the request of the chair and ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property, the Center, with the

assistance of Administrative Office staff, analyzed the nature and content of chief

judges’ public orders under the Judicial Conduct and Disability Act of 1980. Center

staff also consulted with the U.S. Department of Justice, as required by a May 2002

statute, on the department’s report to the judiciary committees about the effectiveness of the State Justice Institute.

At the request of the Federal State Jurisdiction Committee of the Judicial Conference, Center staff developed a Web site that provides information on educational

programs and activities for federal and state judges. On request of the Civic Education Subcommittee of the Committee on the Judicial Branch, the Center provided

survey information about federal courts’ community outreach and public education

activities.

Federal Judicial History

To help educators teach about the history of the federal courts, the Center is

developing on-line educational materials that include historical documents and

extensive descriptions of 15 significant trials. (This project is partially supported by

the Federal Judicial Center Foundation, see page 14.) Center staff are working with

the American Bar Association’s Division for Public Education to establish summer

workshops for teachers and to develop materials to support judges and court staff

who wish to use the teaching units in public programs.

Amistad: The Federal Courts and the Challenge to Slavery, is a 30-minute Center video

about the enslaved Africans who won their freedom through a decision of the

Supreme Court. Related documents and descriptions of the case are on the Center’s

Web site (at www.fjc.gov on the Internet and at jnet.fjc.dcn on the federal courts’

intranet). The video won a finalist award in the national Telly Awards competition.

The Center’s History of the Federal Judiciary Web site has been expanded to

include information on courts of special jurisdiction, court officers and staff, and

historical programs in the federal courts. A recently completed bibliography of

historical works about federal judges and a directory of oral histories with federal

judges will be linked to the judges’ on-line biographical entries. A monograph, Order

in the Courts: A History of the Federal Court Clerk’s Office, uses legislative material and

other primary sources to describe the changing nature of the clerks’ duties over the

course of U.S. history.
14 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER FOUNDATION

The Federal Judicial Center Foundation is a private, nonprofit corporation established by Congress to receive gifts to support the work of the Center. By statute, the

foundation has sole authority to decide whether to accept gifts to support the work

of the Center and thereby to determine the suitability of would-be donors. The

foundation may not accept gifts earmarked for projects that have not previously

been approved by the Center’s Board, and the Center has sole control over the

design and conduct of research or education programs supported by donations.

The foundation is governed by a seven-person board appointed by the Chief

Justice, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of

Representatives. The members of the foundation’s board during 2002 were

Dianne M. Nast, Esq., Lancaster, Pa., chair

Richard D. Casey, Esq., Sioux Falls, S.D.

Laurie L. Michel, Esq., Washington, D.C.

Charles B. Renfrew, Esq., San Francisco, Cal.

Marna S. Tucker, Esq., Washington, D.C.

John B. White, Jr., Esq., Spartanburg, S.C.

Benjamin L. Zelenko, Esq., Washington, D.C.

In creating the foundation, Congress directed that Center annual reports describe the purposes for which foundation gifts were used in the year covered by the

report. The Center used foundation gifts in 2002 for specialized research and

education projects as follows:

• A multiyear grant from the Hewlett Foundation is supporting a project that

will provide on-site consultation to courts seeking assistance in developing or

refining their alternative dispute resolution programs. In 2002 the grant

supported two meetings of the project advisory board and the development

of educational materials.

• A grant from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants supported one seminar to help judges analyze financial statements presented as

evidence.

• Undesignated funds were used to support judicial seminars on specialized

topics such as intellectual property and employment law; for partial support

of the Center’s project to provide secondary school and college educators

with Web-based curriculum units about historic federal trials; and to provide

supplies and token gifts for briefings of judicial officials from foreign countries.
2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center 15

JUDGE JOHN R. BROWN AWARD

Law clerks and friends of Judge John R. Brown created the Judge John R. Brown

Scholarship Foundation in 1993. Judge Brown, who served on the U.S. Court of

Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from 1955 until his death in 1993, and as chief judge

from 1967 until 1979, was a strong proponent of improved judicial administration

and procedure. To recognize Judge Brown’s appreciation of the Federal Judicial

Center and his commitment to research and education about and for the federal

judiciary, the Foundation Board established the Judge John R. Brown Judicial

Scholarship and Education Award to recognize Center employees and those outside

the Center who contribute to its work. This year the Board selected Bruce Clarke, a

senior attorney in the Judicial Education Division, and Laurie Levenson, of the

Loyola Law School of Los Angeles. Previous recipients are Professors Margeret

Berger, Karen Blum, Erwin Chemerinsky, Ira Robbins, and Elizabeth Warren, and

Center staff members Denise Neary, Donna Stienstra, and Elizabeth Wiggins.
16 2002 Annual Report of the Federal Judicial Center

ADVISORY COMMITTEES

Advisory committees provide guidance to the Center on education programs and publications. Center Board members

serve on each of the judicial education advisory committees as well as on the Benchbook committee and on the board of

editors for the Manual for Complex Litigation. These groups, which typically meet by telephone conference or during other

Center programs, had the following membership during all or part of 2002.

Committee on Appellate Judge Education

Judge Kenneth F. Ripple (7th Cir.), Chair

Judge Bobby R. Baldock (10th Cir.)

Judge Pierre N. Leval (2d Cir.), Center Board Representative

Judge Stanley Marcus (11th Cir.), Center Board Representative

Judge Pauline Newman (Fed. Cir.), Center Board Representative

Judge Karen J. Williams (4th Cir.)

Committee on Bankruptcy Judge Education

Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth L. Perris (D. Or.), Chair

Bankruptcy Judge Nancy C. Dreher (D. Minn.)

Chief Bankruptcy Judge James B. Haines, Jr. (D. Me.)

Chief Bankruptcy Judge Robert F. Hershner, Jr. (M.D. Ga.), Center Board

Representative

Chief Bankruptcy Judge David S. Kennedy (W.D. Tenn.)

Stephen H. Case, Esq., New York, N.Y.

Professor S. Elizabeth Gibson (University of North Carolina Law

School)

David A. Lander, Esq., St. Louis, Mo.

Francis F. Szczebak (Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts), ex officio

Committee on the Benchbook for U.S. District Court

Judges

Judge A. David Mazzone (D. Mass.), Chair

Judge Wayne E. Alley (W.D. Okla.)

Judge William O. Bertelsman (E.D. Ky.)

Judge Edward C. Prado (W.D. Tex.)

Judge William H. Yohn, Jr. (E.D. Pa.), Center Board Representative

Hon. John R. Steer (U.S. Sentencing Commission)

Committee on District Judge Education

Judge David W. McKeague (W.D. Mich.), Chair

Judge Garrett E. Brown, Jr. (D.N.J.)

Judge Robert J. Bryan (W.D. Wash.), Center Board Representative

Judge Charles N. Clevert, Jr. (E.D. Wis.)

Judge W. Royal Furgeson, Jr. (W.D. Tex.)

Judge Jean C. Hamilton (E.D. Mo.), Center Board Representative

Judge Paul A. Magnuson (D. Minn.)

Robert T. Haar, Esq., St. Louis, Mo.

George F. Pappas, Esq., Washington, D.C.

Committee on Magistrate Judge Education

Magistrate Judge Karen K. Klein (D.N.D.), Chair

Magistrate Judge Robert B. Collings (D. Mass.), Center Board Representative

Magistrate Judge Jerry A. Davis (N.D. Miss.)

Magistrate Judge Jonathan W. Feldman (W.D.N.Y.)

Magistrate Judge John F. Moulds (E.D. Cal.)

Magistrate Judge Peggy E. Patterson (E.D. Ky.)

Magistrate Judge Mary E. Stanley (S.D. W. Va.)

Carol E. Heckman, Esq., Buffalo, N.Y.

Frank H. Reynolds, Esq., Lansing, Mich.

Thomas C. Hnatowski (Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts),

ex officio

Board of Editors for the Manual for Complex Litigation

Judge Stanley Marcus (11th Cir.), Chair

Judge John G. Koeltl (S.D.N.Y.)

Judge J. Frederick Motz (D. Md.)

Judge Lee H. Rosenthal (S.D. Tex.)

Judge Barefoot Sanders (N.D. Tex.)

Sheila Birnbaum, Esq., New York, N.Y.

Frank A. Ray, Esq., Columbus, Ohio

Defender Services Advisory Group Panel on Defender

Education

Judy Clarke (Community Defender, E.D. Wash. & D. Idaho), Chair

Henry J. Bemporad (Deputy Federal Public Defender, W.D. Tex.)

David Beneman (Panel Attorney, D. Me.)

Thomas W. Hillier II (Federal Public Defender, W.D. Wash.)

Henry A. Martin (Federal Public Defender, M.D. Tenn.)

Jon M. Sands (Assistant Federal Public Defender, D. Ariz.)

Advisory Committee on Appellate Court Education

Thomas K. Kahn (Clerk of Court, 11th Cir.), Chair

Julie A. Fenton (Senior Staff Attorney, 7th Cir.)

Karen M. Moss (Librarian, 1st Cir.)

Gregory B. Walters (Circuit Executive, 9th Cir.)

Robin J. Weinberger (Chief Deputy Clerk, 8th Cir.)

Mark Zanchelli (Chief Deputy Clerk, 4th Cir.)

Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Court Education

Marcia M. Anderson (Clerk of Court, Bankr. W.D. Wis.), Chair

John S. Brubaker (Chief Deputy Clerk, Bankr. W.D. Ky.)

Geraldine Treutelaar Crockett (Clerk of Court, Bankr. W.D.N.C.)

Kathleen Farrell (Clerk of Court, Bankr. S.D.N.Y.)

Teresa R. Jacobs (Bankruptcy Administrator, 11th Cir., M.D. Ala.)

Dana McWay (Clerk of Court, Bankr. E.D. Mo.)

James J. Waldron, (Clerk of Court, Bankr. D.N.J.)

Advisory Committee on District Court Education

Lawrence K. Baerman (Clerk of Court, N.D.N.Y.), Chair

Laura A. Briggs (Clerk of Court, S.D. Ind.)

Sherri R. Carter (Clerk of Court, C.D. Cal.)

Linda Jacobson (Chief Deputy Clerk of Court, D. Me.)

Gregory J. Leonard (Clerk of Court, M.D. Ga.)

James G. Woodward (Clerk of Court, E.D. Mo.)

Advisory Committee on Probation and Pretrial

Services Education

Ellen J. Krause (Chief U.S. Probation Officer, D. Del.), Chair

Wilma V. McNeese (Chief U.S. Pretrial Services Officer, W.D. Pa.)

David E. Miller (Chief U.S. Probation Officer, S.D. Ohio)

Carol M. Miyashiro (Chief U.S. Pretrial Services Officer, D. Hawaii)

Oscar J. Stephenson, Jr. (Chief U.S. Probation Officer, N.D. Ala.)

Thomas K. Tarr (Chief U.S. Probation Officer, D.N.H.)

Kenneth O. Young (Chief U.S. Probation Officer, S.D. Cal.)