About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

51 Judicature 6 (1967-1968)
Citizen Action - Key to Successful Judicial Reform

handle is hein.journals/judica51 and id is 8 raw text is: Citizen Action-Key to Successful Judicial Reform Glenn R. Winters The biggest package of judicial reform legis- lation in 1967 or in any recent legislative year was enacted during the recently-adjourned session of the Idaho legislature. As reported in our March issue it included bills establish- ing a judicial council, creating the office of administrative assistant to the courts, consoli- dating judicial districts throughout the state and appropriating funds for a new supreme court building, plus resolutions submitting to the voters constitutional amendments to pro- vide for the filling of judicial vacancies by nomination and appointment under a merit plan and for a judicial procedure for discipline and removal of judges. A bill for moderniza- tion of the minor courts through a state-wide two-level court system fell short by only five legislative votes of a majority sufficient to pass it over a gubernatorial veto. What was behind this remarkable accom- plishment? Many things, of course. There were years of effort by the Idaho State Bar, the excellent studies and drafts prepared dur- ing the preceding year and a half by the Idaho Legislative Council, and a Citizens' Conference on Idaho Courts held in Boise in June, 1966, which issued a consensus state- ment endorsing the Legislative Council's pro- posals and recommending a comprehensive court improvement program for the state. In too many instances in the past, however, drafts and recommendations have fallen on deaf ears and come to nought. The biggest single reason why this did not happen in Idaho was the work of the Citizens' Committee on Courts, Inc., during the months between the citizens' conference and the opening of the legislature. The Citizens' Committee on Courts, Inc., was a direct outgrowth of the Citizens' Con- ference on Idaho Courts. During the closing discussion sessions of that conference, a steer- ing committee was appointed to formulate plans for continuing the work of the confer- 6 judicature / Volume 51, Number I / June-July 1967 ence and carrying its message back to the rest of the people of the state. The steering committee met at lunch immediately after ad- journment of the Conference and elected T. M. Walrath of Orofino as its chairman and Mrs. Donna Kay Soderlund, Boise, as secre- tary. In succeeding weeks the Citizens' Com- mittee on Courts, Inc., was established as a non-profit corporation and plans were laid for a comprehensive promotional program cen- tered around a series of follow-up conferences throughout the state during the autumn months. One-day citizens' conferences, patterned in miniature after the initial state conference in Boise, were held in Nampa on October 15, Twin Falls on November 10, and in Idaho Falls and Pocatello both on December 10. These were supplemented by many lecture appearances before educational and civic groups by representatives of the Citizens' Committee on Courts, Inc., the Legislative Council, the State Bar, and the judiciary, along with widespread distribution of liter- ature on judicial administration topics and generous publicity given to the court reform program by newspapers, radio and television throughout the state. The Idaho Citizens' Com- mittee was the key to this outstanding judicial reform record. TEN CITIZENS' CONFERENCES IN 1966 The Citizens' Conference on Idaho Courts was one of 10 citizens' conferences held in 1966 in Tennessee, Georgia, Idaho, Minnesota, North Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Washington and Alabama. In these, from 75 to 150 leading non-lawyer citizens of a state participated in a three-day round of lectures and discussions on the judicial system of their state, its problems and possible solutions to those problems based on the experience of other states. The conferees in each instance

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most