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Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Ind. Courts - Greene Superior Judge David Holt attends pro se conference in Iowa
The Greene County Daily World reports:
Greene Superior Judge David Holt attended the Midwest Regional Conference on Pro Se Litigation at Des Moines, Iowa, on Sept. 7-9 as one of five delegates appointed by Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall Shepard to represent the state at the conference.Other delegations participating and appointed by their respective state chief justices were from Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Utah.
The conference was presented by the American Judicature Society with funding support from the Chicago Bar Foundation, the Iowa State Bar Foundation, the State Justice Institute, and Drake University Law School.
The goal of the conference was to bring judges, lawyers, court staff, legal aid lawyers, legal academics, law and public librarians, and other interested parties together to share information about the need for assistance to parties representing themselves in legal proceedings, to lighten the burden on such parties, to engage lawyers in this effort, and to develop action plans to be implemented in the states participating in the conference.
Within the next 30 days, Judge Holt and the other members of the Indiana delegation will submit their action plan to the Indiana Supreme Court recommending further steps that can be taken in Indiana to provide continued and improved access to justice for all citizens.
In recent years increasing numbers of litigants have been taking a do-it-yourself approach to their legal needs and have been entering our nation's courtrooms without a lawyer. Courts have been left to cope with an overwhelming number of people who don't know the court system, while litigants are often left frustrated.
In 2001, Judge Holt was appointed by Chief Justice Shepard to chair an Indiana Pro Se Advisory Committee to advise the Indiana Supreme Court on responding to the increasing numbers of self-represented litigants. The Pro Se Advisory Committee has met often and made certain recommendation to the Indiana Supreme Court. The Committee has raised issues that have been debated and continue to be debated among bench and bar. To meet the challenge of the increasing numbers of self-represented litigants, the Indiana Supreme Court has approved many changes in rules and procedures, has authorized the use of certain standard forms, and provided a Self-Service Center on the webpage of the Indiana Supreme Court.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 12, 2006 04:18 PM
Posted to Indiana Courts