News Item
Minnesota Supreme Court, Court of Appeals launch Access and Fairness survey
Posted: Monday, August 31, 2015
Throughout the month of September, the Minnesota Supreme Court and the Minnesota Court of Appeals will be conducting a survey to assess how court participants and stakeholders view the accessibility and fairness of Minnesota’s appellate court proceedings. Findings from the survey will be presented in the Minnesota Judicial Branch’s annual Performance Measures report, and will be used by the courts to guide future strategic planning.
“The Minnesota Supreme Court and Court of Appeals provide review in many of the most difficult and complicated cases in our state’s court system,” said Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie S. Gildea. “Ensuring that our courts are accessible to the people of Minnesota, and that those who enter our courts view the proceedings as fair and impartial, are essential to maintaining the public’s trust in the judiciary. This survey will provide us important feedback from those who use and rely on our appellate courts, which we will use as we continue to seek ways to increase access to justice and improve the performance of Minnesota’s courts.”
The Minnesota Judicial Branch conducted Access and Fairness surveys in the state’s district courts in 2008 and 2013, which included in-person surveys of thousands of court users in more than 100 courthouse locations across the state. Results from the district court Access and Fairness surveys can be found in the Minnesota Judicial Branch Performance Measures reports from
2009 and
2013.
The 2015 Access and Fairness survey of Minnesota’s appellate courts will be directed at attorneys who are registered with the Minnesota Appellate Courts Case Management System, including attorneys who have presented oral arguments before the Supreme Court or Court of Appeals, or who have requested to receive notices, summaries, or opinions from the appellate courts. In total, roughly 5,700 attorneys in the state will be asked to take part in the survey. In addition, surveys will also be delivered to all sitting district court judges in the state.
Survey participants will be asked an array of questions about both the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court. Participants will be asked to rate each of the courts in several areas, including the timeliness of case disposition, the support provided by court staff, the cost of court fees, and the clarity and impartiality of court decisions.
“The goal of this survey is to gain valuable feedback from those who closely watch or participate in appellate court proceedings,” said Minnesota Court of Appeals Chief Judge Edward J. Cleary. “We believe it is critical to provide a forum for those who work in and around our courtrooms to give an honest assessment of the accessibility, openness, fairness, and equity of our proceedings. While we take great pride in the work of our courts, we know that there will always be ways to improve how we serve the people of Minnesota and ensure fair and equal access to our justice system.”
The 2015 Access and Fairness survey of Minnesota’s appellate courts will be e-mailed to attorneys and judges on Tuesday, September 1 and will be open for responses through Wednesday, September 30.
Visit the Minnesota Judicial Branch website for more information about the
Minnesota Supreme Court and the
Minnesota Court of Appeals.