Volume 22, No. 6 March 2012 

E-SJI NEWS SJI NEWS

In this Issue 

Update on SJI Grant 

Programs for FY 2012 

1 

Update on Intimate 

Partner Sexual Abuse 

Course 

1 

State Supreme Court 

Initiative Update 

2 

SJI Grant Reports 

Available at the NCSC 

Library 

2 

AJA Blog 3 

The National Judicial Education Program (NJEP), a 

project of Legal Momentum, has been working to 

update training provided through its popular course, 

Intimate Partner Sexual Abuse: Adjudicating This 

Hidden Dimension of Domestic Violence Cases (SJI11-E-154). The course contains 13 modules, case 

studies, and an array of valuable insights for judicial 

and legal audiences on this important issue. 

The most recent addition to the course is a Tribal 

Practice section that contains information specific to 

tribal courts, as provided by the American Indian 

Law Institute and the University of New Mexico/

Southwest Indian Legal Clinic. The online course

Page 1 

SJI’s solicitation for concept papers dealing with self

-represented litigation and the state courts resulted in 

47 papers; totaling $4,770,208. Self-represented 

litigation in the state courts was designated an SJI 

Priority Investment Area for FY 2012. Once the 

Board has awarded grants for selected projects, more 

details will be provided. 

SJI continues to receive over $1 million in grant applications per quarter., and encourages potential applicants to consider submitting their application as 

early in the fiscal year as possible. In addition, SJI 

staff can assist potential applicants in determining 

whether their proposed projects are eligible within 

the parameters of SJI’s Grant Guideline. 

It is important for potential applicants to consider the 

timing of applications. While SJI has not previously 

allocated all grant funding before the 4th quarter of a 

given fiscal year, increases in quarterly applications, 

designation of Priority Investment Areas, and potential partner grants at the national level have an impact 

on available grant funding. 

In addition to the requirements contained in the Grant 

Guideline, applicants are also being asked if their 

proposed projects advance one or more Priority Investment Areas, and if not, why. 

Potential applicants are encouraged to contact SJI 

with any questions. The deadline for 3rd quarter 

grant applications is May 1, 2012. The deadline for 

4th quarter grant applications is August 1, 2012. 

Follow SJI on 

Facebook and 

Twitter

For the latest information on 

projects, grant application deadlines, and updates. Connect 

with us on both forums by visiting our Facebook and Twitter

Update on SJI Grant Programs for FY 2012: 

Priority Investment Areas 

Intimate Partner Sexual Abuse Course 

Offers New Tribal Practice Section 

can be accessed free of charge. While SJI did not 

fund the tribal component of this grant (due to statutory prohibitions), it demonstrates how this course 

continues to be relevant to a broad judicial audience. 
With the support of the SJI, the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) and William & 

Mary Law School’s Institute for Bill of Rights 

Law launched the State Supreme Court Initiative (SSCI) in FY 2010 (SJI-10-N-147). The 

project began with three initial goals: 1) to 

study and report on the work and decisions of 

state supreme courts; 2) to encourage journalists and academics to engage in similar study; 

and, 3) to provide a new vehicle for public 

education about the important work of state 

supreme courts 

The primary vehicle through which SSCI is 

working towards these objectives is a website 

featuring: 1) a database of detailed information 

and statistics about state supreme courts and 

their opinions; and 2) a blog for the state supreme court decisions modeled off the highly 

successful SCOTUSblog for U.S. Supreme 

Court decisions. In the fall of 2010, SSCI 

convened a task force made up of prominent 

legal journalists, state supreme court scholars, 

transparency advocates, clerks, and judges. 

The task force discussed the shape of the project and plotted strategies to move ahead. At 

the suggestion of the task force, SSCI undertook a two-month trial last spring during 

which two William & Mary Law students 

explored state supreme court information networks and approaches to covering state supreme courts. The students analyzed various 

aspects of state supreme courts (opinion release schedules, volume, opinion release format, etc.). They also tested how to blog about 

state supreme court outcomes, getting a sense 

Update on the State Supreme Court Initiative (SSCI) 

E-SJI News Volume 22, No. 6 March 2012 

Page 2 

of how much time it takes and what resources 

are needed. 

The trial proved to be a great learning experience. Building on this work, a state supreme 

court “bloginar” course began with a series of 

lectures on state supreme courts as institutions. 

Law students have been assigned five state 

supreme courts to cover. Students are currently blogging weekly about state supreme 

court outcomes, upcoming cases, and court 

composition matters, generating approximately 30 posts per week. In addition, the 

students are creating profiles with information 

about the unique history and make up of each 

state supreme court. 

The SSCI will rollout the blog/website and 

products by the summer of 2012. 

SJI Grant Reports Available Online 

SJI continues to make all grant reports and most grant products available online through the National Center for State 

Courts (NCSC) Library and Digital Archive. Potential applicants are encouraged to thoroughly research the online library 

for reports on their topic area, prior to submitting a grant 

application to SJI. The NCSC Library and Digital Archive 

are two different resources with unique URLs. It is recommended that searches for SJI grant reports and other 

state court resources begin with the NCSC Library section. 

The NCSC Library also maintains an active Twitter feed 

with state court updates and additions to the collection. 
Page 3 

SJI Board of Directors

Chairman 

James R. Hannah 

Chief Justice 

Supreme Court of Arkansas 

Little Rock, AR 

Vice Chairman 

Daniel J. Becker 

State Court Administrator 

Utah AOC 

Salt Lake City, UT 

Secretary 

Gayle A. Nachtigal 

Judge 

Washington County Circuit Court 

Hillsboro, OR 

Treasurer 

Hernan D. Vera 

President & CEO 

Public Counsel Law Center 

Los Angeles, CA 

Robert A. Miller 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

Supreme Court of South Dakota 

Pierre, SD 

Chase T. Rogers 

Chief Justice 

Supreme Court of Connecticut 

Hartford, CT 

David V. Brewer 

Chief Judge 

Oregon Court of Appeals 

Salem, OR 

Wilfredo Martinez 

County Judge 

9th Judicial Circuit of Florida 

Orlando, FL 

Marsha J. Rabiteau 

Policy Consultant 

Rabiteau Consulting 

Bloomfield, CT 

John B. Nalbandian 

Partner 

Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP 

Cincinnati, OH 

Isabel Framer 

President 

Language Access Consultants, LLC 

Copley, OH

Jonathan D. Mattiello 

Executive Director 

The State Justice Institute is a federallyfunded, non-profit corporation established by 

federal law in 1984 to improve the quality of 

justice in the state courts. 

E-SJI News Volume 22, No. 6 March 2012

American Judges Association Features Blog 

to Promote Judicial Communication 

The American Judges Association (AJA) received a Technical Assistance (TA) grant from 

SJI in FY 2009 to redesign their website; adding an array of new features and functionality 

(SJI-09-T-162). 

Among the notable additions since the redesign has been the AJA Blog. The blog comments on issues impacting the state courts, 

suggests relevant readings to expand judicial 

knowledge and professional perspectives, and 

provides a forum for readers to respond. 

Unlike most other blogs available, it is written, 

published, and managed by a sitting state court 

judge. 

Judge Kevin Burke has been a Minneapolis 

trial court judge since 1984. Judge Burke 

coauthored the AJA’s white paper on procedural fairness in 2007, and has co-presented on 

procedural fairness to more than 2,000 state 

and federal judges. A 2003 recipient of the 

educational website (SJI-07-T-058). In 2010, 

SJI funded a TA grant to develop distance 

learning enhancement for the National Association for Court Management (NACM) website (SJI-10-E-159). In 2011, SJI provided 

Project Grant funding to NCSC’s Center for 

Elders and the Courts to build a multifunctional website to develop and disseminate 

valuable resources on elder issues (SJI-11-N177). Currently, SJI is supporting the redesign 

and enhancement of the Council of Chief 

Judges of the State Courts of Appeal 

(CCJSCA) website. 

William H. Rehnquist Award, he has adapted 

his talents to his role as the primary AJA blogger. 

Websites for state courts and national court 

support organizations are one of the most readily available resources for judges, court staff, 

and stakeholders to access timely information 

as efficiently as possible. SJI has worked with 

a variety of organizations at the local, state, 

and national level to improve their website 

design, content, and capabilities. 

In 2007, SJI provided a TA Grant to the New 

York Unified Court System to develop an