Posts By: Nina Thomas

A Lookback at the 2018 NACM Annual Conference

November 26, 2018
by Dorothy Howell, Alyce Roberts, Randy Short, and Jeffrey M. Tsunekawa

Editor’s Note: We hope you enjoy looking back at the NACM 2018 Annual Conference in Atlanta. You can find more photos of the conference on our website and on flickr. Videos of our education sessions can be watched on YouTube…. Read more »

Improving Public Confidence in the Court

November 15, 2018
by Barbara Marcille

Courthouses are typically dignified, formal places, often with armed guards and security equipment at the entrances. Judges wear robes and sit behind raised benches to convey their authority. The judicial branch is responsible for adhering to constitutionally and statutorily mandated… Read more »

How to Stay Calm in Times of Stress

November 15, 2018
by Melissa Eisler

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on Melissa Eisler’s Mindful Minutes, a blog about how to live a mindful life, despite having a demanding schedule. Have you ever had a short fuse, overreacted, or lost your cool in a stressful… Read more »

President’s Message

November 15, 2018
by Paul DeLosh

As new demands, challenges, and opportunities are presented within our court systems, we are reminded of the importance of effective partnerships. Now, more than ever, multi-organizational partnerships are an important means to develop and deliver needed programs and services. The… Read more »

Editor’s Note

November 15, 2018
by Tasha Ruth

Last fall, I purchased a fixer-upper that looked and smelled like 1962. It’s a quaint little four-split with angled wood beams in the great room. I saw so much potential I hit the ground running with a sledgehammer in one… Read more »

Early Career Professionals

November 16, 2018
by Nicole Garcia, with Danna Quinn

Danna Quinn, director of human resources for the Judicial Branch of Arizona in Maricopa County, is retiring after a career of over 32 years with the branch. We sat down together to reflect for a bit on her career journey… Read more »

Courtside Conversation
Adrienne Eagan

November 16, 2018
by Dawn Palermo

Adrienne Eagan Adrienne Eagan is a court researcher in the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The court has ten appointed judges. She joined NACM in 2018. How did you get started in court administration? After graduation, I began… Read more »

A Question of Ethics

November 15, 2018
by Peter C. Kiefer

By now, social media is a staple of American life. Don’t have a Facebook page, avoid a Twitter account, or stay away from Snapchat, and you are isolated as the world races by. For court professionals, this poses a particularly… Read more »

IJIS Exchange

November 16, 2018
by Jenny Bunch

Automation and Integration Support Pretrial Reform A COLUMN DEDICATED TO THE EXCHANGE OF IDEAS ON INFORMATION SHARING IN JUSTICE Sue Humphreys, IJIS Courts Advisory Committee, Vice Chair In August 2018, California became the first state to legislate the elimination of… Read more »

Management Musings

November 16, 2018
by Giuseppe M. Fazari

Lee Jun-fan, better known as Bruce Lee, was a martial arts instructor and founder of the Jeet Kune Do (JKD) art form. Many consider Lee to be one of the most influential martial artists of all time, and his work… Read more »

“If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It”

May 16, 2018
by David C. Steelman

The ordinary administration of criminal and civil justice . . . contributes, more than any other circumstance, to impressing upon the minds of the people affection, esteem, and reverence towards the government. Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 17, in Clinton Rossiter… Read more »

Purposes of Courts Reformulated

May 16, 2018
by Victor E. Flango

In the winter 2016 edition of the Court Manager, Kent Batty challenged us to a discussion of Ernie Friesen’s classic “Purposes of Courts.”1 In light of the evolving role of courts, it is indeed time that these Purposes be reviewed… Read more »

President’s Message

May 16, 2018
by Vicky Carlson

The 2018 annual conference in Atlanta is just around the corner, and the Education Committee has been busy putting together an outstanding education program and conference experience. With the conference upon us, it also means that it will be time… Read more »

Editor’s Notes

May 16, 2018
by Tasha Ruth

Ever since the 2018 NACM Midyear Conference in sunny Orange County, California, I’ve been bragging about my growing hippocampus. Allow me to explain. The conference focused on mindfulness, taking care of ourselves so we can become better leaders and managers,… Read more »

Courtside Conversation
Jame Carney

May 16, 2018
by Matthew Kleiman & Taylor Allison

Interview conducted and edited by Matthew Kleiman & Taylor Allison Editor’s note: Courtside Conversation has always highlighted court administrators, focusing on their backgrounds, their management styles, and their relationships with judges and other administrative staff. This one is different. In… Read more »

Early Career Professionals

May 16, 2018
by Michelle Dunivan

Distracted, indecisive, selfish, disruptive, entitled, impatient, entrepreneurial: traits not typically solicited in a court administration job posting. Yet these traits are often associated with Millennials, the generation occupying and applying for the majority of jobs in courts worldwide. Each year,… Read more »

A Question of Ethics

May 16, 2018
by Peter C. Kiefer

Despite years of debate, accepting gifts is still one of the most challenging topics in court ethics. Many stand adamantly against court personnel accepting gifts under any circumstances; others worry that taking such an unflinching stand harms employee morale and… Read more »

Management Musings

May 16, 2018
by Giuseppe M. Fazari

In his book The Gap: The Science of What Separates Us from Other Animals, Thomas Suddendorf studies the six traits that separate us from other species — language, mental time travel, theory of mind, intelligence, culture, and morality. Suddendorf argues… Read more »