Proposals for realigning judicial districts, changes in court funding, improved technology and enhanced transparency were at the forefront of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry's (LABI) four-part series on judicial modernizations.
The full text, released earlier last month, aims to increase public understanding of the state’s judiciary to earn trust in the court system.
“All of the responses have been very positive," said Lauren Chauvin, director of LABI's civil justice, energy and judicial program, in comments to the Louisiana Record. "With redistricting around the corner, we believe lawmakers will rely on the information in our Judicial Realignment and Redistricting to make an informed decision on our judicial election districts, which have never been comprehensively redistricted.”
In the call for realignment, LABI states the boundary lines for Louisiana’s 42 district courts have never been comprehensively reassessed; the lines for the Court of Appeals haven’t been redrawn since 1980 and the Supreme Court district since 1997.
Redistricting will better reflect the needs of the state and the current system may be more efficient, LABI argues.
Additionally, by improving transparency in the state, the series calls for an update to the Louisiana Supreme Court rules requiring the court to post all financial disclosure statements and requiring lawyers to report anything they give to a judge. The state should also develop standardized websites with a common interface to increase accessibility through technology, LABI says.