Access to justice seems to me to be an unarguable precondition for our society to function - a founding principle about which democrats, independents, and republicans ought to be able to easily agree.

And yet, here in my home state of New Hampshire, the Supreme Court Chief Justice John Broderick has had to conduct a rare public information campaign to battle a proposed (further) $4 million in budget cuts for the judicial system.  This on top of prior cuts which necessitated 11 furlough days (courts are closed) for the coming year.  A budget cutting strategy that has been utilized also by the neighboring State of Vermont Judiciary.

What does a $4 million dollar budget cut mean - Chief Justice John Broderick said “… civil jury trials would be suspended and if security costs are cut, family courts would be closed on certain days.”  Read more here http://tinyurl.com/2darc9n

In one of NH’s busiest District Courts, the Court Clerk has had to cut back hours due to reduced staffing.  http://tinyurl.com/23yzkb9

As a software provider of court technology, an easy recommendation from me would be ”implement case management technology to do more with less”.   However, I know that the NH Courts have been in the process of implementing a new case management system (from one of our competitors) for the last three years.  And while I believe that JustWare would have been a better, more cost effective choice, that is not the root issue.  A reliable funding stream for the courts is the root issue.

Our highway infrastructure is funded primarily by taxes on gasoline insuring a constant source of funding to build and repair our roads.  I do not believe that the court system can be subject to the same ‘share the burden’ cost cutting as being applied to other agencies in the state.  The tipping point of no access to justice is getting too close.