Court Leader's Advantage

Thursday, February 18, 2021, Court Leader’s Advantage Podcast Episode

Back in October of 2019, for most courts, working remotely from home was a privilege granted to a small number of court employees. It seemed to be granted mostly to Court Technology workers and Executive Office staff who were working on some major project. Who would have thought that just six months later, courts across the country would be engaged in promoting telework to many if not most of their employees? This has been a profound cultural shift that is almost unheard of in court administration.

We now have close to a year’s experience with allowing telework on a widespread basis.

· What has been the experience of court administrators and clerks of court with telework?

· What productivity improvements have we seen?

· What are the obstacles that we have encountered and how have we steered around them?

· What lessons have we learned and what advice do we have to share?

We are talking with court administrators from around the country about the effect teleworking has had on the courts including the technological, cultural, and operational aspects of this dramatic shift in how court work gets done.

About Our Co-Host Panelists 

Co-Host Alyce Roberts is the Special Projects Coordinator for the Alaska Court System.  Alyce is a 2010 Fellow of the Institute for Court Management.

Sam Hamrick is the Court Executive Officer for the Superior Court in Riverside, California.  Sam received his Bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina, his Master's in Public Administration from the Western Carolina University, his Juris Doctor from Campbell University School of Law. 

Terri March is the Court Administrator for the Justice Court in North Las Vegas, Nevada.  Terri received a Bachelor's Degree and a Master's Degree in Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.  She is a Fellow of the Institute for Court Management (ICM) and is a certified ICM faculty; she received a Master of Arts in Security Studies from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.  

Courtney Whiteside is the Director of the Municipal Court in St. Louis, Missouri.  Previously, Courtney was a court clerk in St. Charles, Missouri, and then as the state’s municipal division courts monitor with the Office of State Courts Administrator and Missouri Supreme Court.

 Debbie Spradley is the Trial Court Administrator with the Clackamas County Circuit Court in Oregon City, Oregon.  Debbie received her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the California State University, San Marcos.