WHY COURT ADMINISTRATION?

JUSTICE SYSTEM REFORM ACTIVITY IN KOSOVO

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JUSTICE SYSTEM REFORM ACTIVITY IN KOSOVO

KOSOVO JUDICIAL COUNCIL MARKS TRANSITION
IN THE JUSTICE SECTOR

On December 20, 2006, UNMIK Regulation No. 2005/52, established the Kosovo Judicial Council, a professional body charged with oversight of the judiciary and courts under the authority of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General. USAID's Justice System Reform Activity in Kosovo (JSRAK) has provided targeted assistance which has laid the groundwork for the creation of the KJC. NCSC collaborated with UNMIK, Kosovar judges and the Assembly to identify and recommend to the SRSG judges and prosecutors to fill the KJC positions that were not ex-officio or held by international members.

The UNMIK regulation delineates the KJC's authority to set administrative policies and to provide administrative oversight, in addition to addressing policy and procedure concerning the recruitment, appointment, evaluation, promotion, transfer, and discipline of judges. This regulation will serve as an interim measure until the Law on Courts is promulgated. Since the KJC's first meeting on April 5, 2006, JSRAK has provided technical assistance to the KJC as the new body has organized itself by appointing a vice-chair and committees on, discipline, recruitment, rules, court administration and budget
and finance.

In only the first few months, the KJC has approved terms of reference for a Director of the Secretariat (a position similar to a permanent secretary of a ministry), authorized the publication of a vacancy notice for minority applicants for judge and prosecutor, approved the transfer of the KJC portion of the Department of Judicial Administration budget from UNMIK to the KJC, adopted codes of ethics for judges, lay judges and prosecutors, adopted time standards for disposition of cases, and interviewed and recommended the appointment of twenty-two new judges, including eleven minority applicants for the advertised vacant positions.

Issues to be considered by the KJC in upcoming meetings are strategic planning for the judiciary, additional appointments for prosecutorial and judicial vacancies, the organization of the administrative office of courts, and the staffing of administrative vacancies such as the Director of the Secretariat.

WHY COURT ADMINISTRATION? & WHY COURT ADMINISTRATORS?

Why Court Administration? --- Some History
More than 35 years ago the inability of many US courts to keep pace with swelling caseloads, increasing public concern about the performance of the judicial system, and the availability of federal funds to improve police and prosecution following enactment of the 1968 Safe Streets Act all contributed to an "explosion" in court administration In August 1969, the Chief Justice of the United States, Warren E. Burger observed, "The courts of this country need management, which busy and overworked judges, with drastically increased caseloads, cannot give. We need a corps of trained administrators or managers to manage and direct the machinery so that judges can concentrate on their primary duty of judging. Such managers do not now exist, except for a handful that are almost entirely confined to state court systems. We must literally create a corps of court administrators or managers and do it at once."

Why Court Administration? --- Today
Today, as a result of Chief Justice Burger's efforts and those of other leaders in the field, court administrators serve in court systems at the federal, state, and local levels. The administrator's primary role is to facilitate the administrative functions of the court under the general guidance of the chief judge. Together, they provide the court with an executive leadership team, capable of confronting the increased complexity and necessity of change that characterize a modern court system. Complexities of life and the scope of litigation can create an administrative burden on the courts that cannot be handled by judges and traditional court staff alone. Courts need professional administrators to organize and manage nonjudicial matters under the guidance of judges, just as city managers, school superintendents, and hospital administrators manage their institutions. Professionally trained administrators thoroughly schooled in judicial procedures and modern administrative practices, either on the job or through formal training, provide court systems with the administrative competence that the courts traditionally have lacked.

What Do Court Administrators Do? ---
Administration & Management
Duties of court administrators vary, depending on the location and size of the court in which they are employed. The court administrator's realm is administrative rather than legal and thus he/she needs the skills required of any professional position with managerial responsibility. One Los Angeles presiding judge stated, "We have plenty of lawyers in the court. What we need is someone who has managerial background and knows what management is." Basic functions performed by court administrators include the following:

Human Resource Management
Caseflow Management

Fiscal Administration
Technology Management
Space (Facilities) Management

Information Management
Intergovernmental Liaison
Secretariat Services

Research and Advisory Services
Community Relations and Public Information

The Relationship of the Court Administrator to the Bench
The court is a complex environment characterized by ambiguity and adherence to local custom, both political and organizational. Within that environment, one of the most significant relationships is that between the judges and the court administrator. Judges ultimately are responsible for effective administration of the court. Frequently, constitutions and statutes make this duty clear; other times, the duty is implied. In either case, effective administration takes place when the judiciary and the court administrator manage the court together. Effective systems of administration provide for the participation of all judges in the development of policy and planning for the court. Through the collaborative efforts of the court administrator and the chief judge, court policy is implemented, monitored, and facilitated.

The Court Administrator's Dual Function
The court administrator serves the dual function of increasing the amount of time a judge has for adjudication and bringing professional management knowledge and capability to the judiciary. In courts where judges lack administrative support, they must divide their time between judicial and administrative functions. With mounting caseloads and increased pressure for more case dispositions, judges have little time to direct the day-to-day operations of the court system, plan for the implementation of new technologies, or integrate new procedures that can improve system performance. A court administrator can help the court accomplish these tasks.

Perceptions of the Court Administrator by the Judiciary
The attitudes and perceptions of the judiciary, especially those of the chief judge, are of key importance to a court administrator. Usually, a court administrator serves as an appointee of the entire court but is subject to the supervision and direction of the chief or presiding judge. In addition, many functions performed by a court administrator were traditionally duties of the chief judge. Therefore, how the chief judge perceives the court administrator's role will determine, to a great extent, the exact duties of the court administrator. The chief judge and the court administrator can increase each other's effectiveness by establishing a relationship based on mutual respect for one another and exploiting the skills each brings to the task at hand. If a chief judge views the functions of the court administrator as separate but supportive of his or her own functions, the judge is more likely to entrust the administrator with broad responsibilities, enhancing the efficiency of the court. It should be emphasized that all judges, particularly the chief judge, are responsible for the administration of the court. In effect, the judges are a board of directors; the chief judge is the chairman of the board, and the court administrator is the executive officer responsible for executing policies adopted by the board. The chief judge and the court's administrator form the court's leadership team. As such, they perform several interrelated and interdependent actions on behalf of the court.

Personal and Professional Skills
Successful court administrators working in a complex court environment exhibit the following:

Learning Skills
Problem Solving and Creativity Skills Interpersonal Skills
Teamwork Skills

Speaking, Writing, and Listening Skills
Motivation and Goal-setting Skills
Negotiation Skills
Leadership Skills

Hiring a Court Administrator
Ideally, the court administrator will combine the technical skills of a manager with knowledge of public and business administration and an understanding of the duties and the problems peculiar to the courts. Specifically, the court administrator should have completed considerable study of public and business administration or have on-the-job experience in these fields. To this end, many courts in the US require that a court administrator hold a degree in business, public, or judicial administration or be a graduate of the Court Executive Development Program of the National Center for State Courts' Institute for Court Management. In addition, the court administrator should be familiar with courts and government as well as with business organization and operations.