Peter C. Kiefer Court Roles and Purposes, Public Perception and Trust in the Courts, Strategic Planning

The Future of Restoring Voting Rights for Ex-Felons: The Surprising Facts

Traditionally, defendants convicted of a felony lost their right to vote, sit on a jury, and (in most states) possess a firearm.   It was commonly thought that losing the right to vote was permanent. This perception can be seen even now in a recent New York Times article that focuses on the 6.2 million citizens … Continue reading The Future of Restoring Voting Rights for Ex-Felons: The Surprising Facts

Peter C. Kiefer Court Roles and Purposes, Public Perception and Trust in the Courts

A Fresh Start: What’s the Court’s Role?

The Setting A hot, muggy summer evening in 2010 leads 19-year old Peyton[i] to the home of a schoolmate. Adding bored friends to a summer weekend when parents are away at the Gulf, and the kids had the perfect ingredients for a party. Dozens of kids, many of whom Peyton has never seen before, arrive. … Continue reading A Fresh Start: What’s the Court’s Role?

Peter C. Kiefer Uncategorized

The Latest Secret About Courts and State Legislatures

By: Phillip Knox and Peter C. Kiefer This article has been updated from a previous version posted on August 20, 2018. Back in 2013 we asked about the probability of state legislatures venting their displeasure with state courts, specifically by withholding funds. The assessment was mixed. Most of the 183 court professionals responded at that … Continue reading The Latest Secret About Courts and State Legislatures

Peter C. Kiefer Ethics, Guest Contributors/Authors

The 2018 NACM Annual Conference in Atlanta: Ethics and Active Engagement

The sessions on Monday, presented by the Hon. Susan Sabers, Karl Thoennes III, and Peter C. Kiefer, featured lively discussions as audience members role-played various characters in two scenarios and the entire audience voted on the ethics of the drama using the electronic voting method PollEverywhere. Tell Me Something I Don’t Know About Courts and … Continue reading The 2018 NACM Annual Conference in Atlanta: Ethics and Active Engagement

Peter C. Kiefer Public Perception and Trust in the Courts, Strategic Planning, Technology and Automation

The Risks and Rewards of Risk Assessments

In 2015 we asked court professionals from around the world to assess the probability that predictive technology would move courts to become preventive rather than reactive; courts would start preventing things from happening before they happened.  A hallmark of America’s judicial system is that it is both independent and reactive.  Citizens bring their disputes to … Continue reading The Risks and Rewards of Risk Assessments