NCJ Number
170235
Date Published
1996
Length
73 pages
Annotation
Fourteen recommendations for the Texas court system are offered in this study of judicial independence and accountability by the Texas Commission on Judicial Efficiency (TCJE).
Abstract
Themes of the recommendations encompass self-governance and strength through cooperation, along with independence and accountability. The recommendations cover funding parity, court performance measures, information technology, staff diversity, and long-term planning. The following 14 recommendations are made for the Texas court system: (1) full State funding of appeal courts; (2) full State funding of district courts; (3) emergency contingency fund; (4) strategic planning by the Texas Judicial Council; (5) judicial compensation; (6) judicial compensation commission; (7) court performance measures and standards; (8) recruitment program to increase the minority applicant pool for court staff positions; (9) annual reporting of demographic data on law clerks and attorney staff positions; (10) encouragement of judicial clerkships; (11) student loan repayment fund; (12) judicial internship program; (13) State judicial commission on information technology; and (14) long-range judicial planning. Appendixes contain findings of the TCJE Information Technology Task Force and other task forces, information on the fiscal impact of the recommendations, and a list of TCJE public hearing participants and attendees. 14 footnotes and 1 table