Wyoming Judicial Council Report

• Jurisdiction: Wyoming,United States
• Citation: Vol. 46 No. 1 Pg. 16
• Publication year: 2023
• Pages: 16
• Year: 2023
• topic: Business of Law

Wyoming Judicial Council Report Vol. 46 No. 1 Pg. 16 Wyoming Bar Journal February, 2023

Wyoming Judicial Council Report

Message from Chief Justice Kate Fox, Judicial Council Chairwoman

The Board of Judicial Policy and Administration has been the governing body of the Wyoming Judicial Branch for more than 20 years. The BJPA successfully guided the Judicial Branch through Covid 19 emerging stronger than ever. The Branch demonstrated its resiliency by using technology and ingenuity to adapt its processes and procedures to comply with recommended health precautions, and it experienced the benefits of working together as a Branch. At its September meetings, the BJPA members voted to change the name of the BJPA to the Wyoming Judicial Council. The new name more clearly expresses the entity's role, and the change represents a shift in the Judicial Branch's approach to its governance, as expressed in its vision statement:

The Wyoming Judiciary is a cohesive and collaborative court system, characterized by excellence, that provides justice for the individual and society through the rule of law.

The Wyoming Judicial Branch is committed to excellence in:

• Delivering just and efficient resolution of people's disputes;

• Promoting public confidence in the law and providing access to justice;

• Faithfully discharging our duties through adherence to the law;

• Ensuring fairness and impartiality by providing quality service that continuously improves, that meets or exceeds the public expectations, and that ensures all are treated with courtesy, dignity and respect;

• Fostering an expectation of excellence in the work of the Judiciary through recruitment, training and retention of all judicial officers and employees;

• Acting as a cooperative and collaborative system that speaks with a single voice and shares a common purpose; and

• Ensuring the highest professional conduct, integrity and competence of the bench and bar.

With renewed confidence and an infusion of new judges, the Wyoming Judicial Council now looks forward to bigger steps to adapt the constantly changing demands upon courts and court staff.

Innovation

The Judicial Branch Innovation (JBI) taskforce is leading a branch-wide, post-pandemic examination on how to improve Wyoming's court system. Under the leadership of Retired District Court Judge John Perry, and with the assistance of the National Center for State Courts, JBI members Chief Justice Kate Fox and Justice Lynne Boomgaarden, District...