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December 2008 Vol. 19, No. 3 

E-SJI News    

BOARD APPROVES FY 2009 1st QUARTER GRANTS 

On December 5, 2008, the Board of Directors met via teleconference to make decisions on grant awards for the 

1st quarter. One (1) Project Grant, 4 Technical Assistance (TA) Grants, and 1 Curriculum Adaptation & 

Training (CAT) Grant were approved, for a total of $181,516.

Approved grants included a Project Grant to support a California Judicial Administration Graduate Program. 

This program will help the California judiciary attract and retain employee-students who have the potential to 

become highly educated judicial administrators. Four (4) TA applications were approved by the Board, 

including a child maltreatment caseflow project for the Superior Court of Maricopa County, Arizona; a reengineering project to support the Vermont Judiciary in light of severe budget cuts across the courts in that 

state; and a strategic planning initiative for the Superior Court of San Luis Obispo County, California. 

SJI is currently operating under a Continuing Resolution (CR) (P.L. 110-329) through March 6, 2009. While 

under a CR, the Board of Directors will approve new grant requests for FY 2009, but will not make any 

awards until SJI’s final appropriation is available. 

IMMIGRATION ISSUES IN THE MINNESOTA COURTS 

AND NATIONAL IMPLICATIONS 

The Minnesota Annual Judges Conference was held earlier this month, and included education sessions on the 

impact of immigration in the Minnesota courts. The 3-hour session was presented twice to approximately 70 

judges, and included both short presentations and question and answer sessions to address participant concerns 

about immigration issues. (continued on page 2) 

New Handbooks Provide Helpful Information 

to Court-Appointed Guardians in Georgia 2, 3

Inside

Immigration Issues in the MN Courts 

& National Implications 1, 2

Special Announcements 3
 

The presenters included representatives from the Center for Public Policy Studies (CPPS), Bureau of 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Consulate of Mexico in St. Paul, and the Somali community. 

These educational sessions were part of the CPPS’s grant activities in Minnesota; which are directly supported 

by SJI’s Strategic Initiatives Grants (SIG) program. 

The following topics were covered during the education sessions: 

1. Points of intersection between federal, state, and local immigration law and policy that impact the state 

courts, including: who the immigrants are and the problems they face in court; the impacts of 

immigration in the state courts; and future strategies for addressing the most critical problems faced by 

the state courts in regards to immigration. 

2. Federal enforcement issues, including: the role of ICE; ICE interactions with the state courts; local law 

enforcement, and jails; and ICE holds. During the session the ICE representatives provided an 

extremely useful summary of their procedures and how these impact the state courts. 

3. The potential immigration consequences of state criminal actions, including: roles and responsibilities of 

the judges; classes of immigrants; what is considered a conviction and a sentence; consequences of state 

criminal convictions and sentences for admissibility and deportation of different classes of immigrants. 

A detailed summary of the meeting can be found on the SJI website: 

http://www.sji.gov/PDF/MN_Judges_Conference_Summary.pdf

SJI began using the Strategic Initiatives Grants (SIG) program in FY 2008 to address immigration issues in the 

courts at a national impact level. Two grants were awarded; one to the CPPS; and another to support a 

collaborative effort between the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) and the National Judicial College 

(NJC). 

NEW HANDBOOKS PROVIDE HELPFUL INFORMATION 

TO COURT-APPOINTED GUARDIANS IN GEORGIA 

 

In FY 2008, SJI awarded a grant (SJI-08-N-007) to the Georgia Administrative Office of the Courts to work 

with the Council of Probate Court Judges to develop handbooks and videos on guardianships. The handbooks 

included information about guardianships of incapacitated adults and minors, and the responsibilities that are 

conveyed to guardians. (continued on page 3) 

Page 2 E-SJI News – Vol. 19, No. 3
Board of Directors

Chairman

Robert A. Miller 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

Supreme Court of South Dakota 

Pierre, SD 

Vice Chairman

Joseph F. Baca 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

New Mexico Supreme Court 

Santa Fe, NM 

Secretary

Sandra A. O’Connor 

States Attorney of Baltimore 

County (Ret.) 

Towson, MD 

Executive Committee Member

Keith McNamara, Esq. 

McNamara & McNamara 

Columbus, OH 

Terrence B. Adamson, Esq. 

Executive Vice-President 

The National Geographic Society 

Robert N. Baldwin 

Executive Vice President and 

General Counsel 

National Center for State Courts 

Carlos R. Garza, Esq. 

Administrative Judge (Ret.) 

Round Rock, TX 

Sophia H. Hall 

Administrative Presiding Judge 

Circuit Court of Cook County 

Chicago, IL 

Tommy Jewell 

Presiding Children’s Court Judge 

(Ret.) 

Second Judicial District Court 

Albuquerque, NM 

Arthur A. McGiverin 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

Supreme Court of Iowa 

Des Moines, IA 

Janice Munsterman 

Executive Director 

Jonathan Mattiello 

Deputy Director 

The State Justice Institute is a 

private, non-profit corporation 

established by Federal law in 1984 

to improve the quality of justice in 

state courts, and foster innovative, 

efficient solutions to common 

issues faced by all courts. SJI is 

governed by a Board of Directors 

appointed by the President and 

confirmed by the Senate. 

There were two handbooks produced with this SJI grant: Handbook for 

Guardians and Conservators of Adults in Georgia, and Handbook for 

Conservators for Minors in Georgia. There are also Spanish versions of both 

handbooks. The accompanying videos serve as an educational tool to provide 

in-depth reviews of the procedural expectations of the court. The handbooks 

and videos are not intended to serve as a substitute for professional legal 

advice; they simply provide an accessible and user-friendly resource that 

explains the responsibilities of guardians and their role in court. 

The materials highlight the diverse facets of the guardianship process while 

maintaining a focus on the needs of appointees and courtroom proceedings; 

enhance knowledge and understanding of the process while clearly 

articulating the responsibilities of the guardian and the expectations of the 

court; raise awareness of guardianship cases for the general public; and 

provide instruction and identification of procedural requirements for selfrepresented litigants, including the use of forms or schedules for report 

submission. 

A PDF copy of the Handbook for Guardians and Conservators of Adults in 

Georgia is available on the SJI website. The handbook for minors, and the 

Spanish versions of both handbooks, are available electronically upon request.   

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 

holarship application deadline: February 1, 2009 (2nd

QTR, FY 2009). 

3⁄4 Next grant and sc

3⁄4 The FY 2009 SJI Grant Guideline is now available on the SJI Website. 

3⁄4 For current and future grantees: all grant and scholarship payments are 

made directly from the U.S. Treasury, including paper checks. 

Page 3 E-SJI News – Vol. 19, No. 3