The Digital Divide and Digital Justice: Time to Celebrate

In the spring of 1999, a committee of the Access to Justice Board discussing technology agreed to explore the possibilities of creating a Technology Bill of Rights for the justice system. The concept grew into a full-fledged project involving individuals and organizations from every aspect of the justice system over the next six years.

The preamble to the Justice Technology Bill of Rights, also known as the Access to Justice Technology Principles, articulates the project’s vision. “The use of technologies in the Washington State justice system must protect and advance the fundamental right of equal access to justice. There is particular need to avoid creating or increasing barriers to access and to reduce or remove existing barriers for those who are or may be ex-cluded or underserved, including those not represented by counsel.”

For our library, involvement in the project has brought opportunities to share our concerns about providing access to legal information resources for those who don’t have the latest technology. The inspiration for development of the Seattle library’s Legal Research and Training Center grew from project team discussions. The design of our library’s website benefited from accessibility demonstrations sponsored by the project.

The work of this team of volunteers lead by Don Horowitz reached a milestone on December 2, 2004 when the Washington Supreme Court signed an Order approving and adopting the

Access to Justice Technology Principles.

On May 20, a program celebrating the work of the Technology Bill of Rights project participants entitled “From Idea to Reality” will be held at Seattle University School of Law from 2 until 5:30 PM. Program participants will reflect on the role the Principles have had in shaping policy decision making in their organizations and their perspectives about the role the Principles will play in the future for the justice system and those it serves.

All of us involved with the Technology Bill of Rights project hope that the community will join us in celebrating this milestone. To learn more about the project and the celebration visit the project’s web site at www.techbillofrights.org.

Internet class topic: The Seattle Law Library Internet lunch-break class for web users will be held on the third Thursday of the month on the sixth floor of the County Courthouse, 516 Third Avenue. The May 19 class will feature a discussion about computer-assisted legal research sources for attorneys to use including free web sites, and inexpensive legal databases. On June 16, the class tips and ticks for effective use of the www.LegalWA.org web site. For information about the training and to register, contact Rita Kaiser at (206) 296-0940. For information about additional training opportunities, view the monthly training calendar on the library’s web page at www.kcll.org.

Recent Acquisitions, King County Law Library: Animal Law: Animal Law: Meeting Standards of Care Preventing and Defending Against Veterinary Malpractice; Dangerous Dogs; Civil Procedure: Electronic Evidence: Law and Practice; Remedies in a Nutshell; Keeton on Judging in the American Legal System; Contracts: The Portable UCC; Disability: Monograph on State Disability Discrimination Laws; Domestic Relations: Formi-dable Factors: The Financial Aspects of Divorce; Options for Grandparents and Other Nonparental Caregivers: Adoption, Dependency Guardianship, Nonparental Custody, and Temporary Agreements; Estate Planning: Estate Planning for the Large Estate: Family Limited Partnerships and Beyond; Elder Law Issues in Estate Planning; Labor Law: Representing Immigrant Workers in Wage Claim Cases; Washington Employment law Deskbook; Practice of Law: The Lawyer’s Guide to Increasing Revenue: Unlocking the Profit Potential in Your Firm; Torts: Auto Claims Without Attorneys; Trade Regulation: Doing Business Online; Business at the Speed of Light: Counseling Your Electronic Commerce Client.

Justice in Jeopardy can be examined from several perspectives. The American Bar Association published a study in 2003 titled Justice in Jeopardy: Report of the Commission on the 21st Century Judiciary. This report “explores the serious challenges that confront our judicial systems in the twenty-first century and seeks ways to address them.” The report discusses the politicizing of state high courts, increases in trial court caseload, changes in the nature of litigants and changes in the role of courts. Recommendations address preserving the judiciary’s institutional legitimacy and improving judicial selection.

While the ABA’s report discusses the judiciary, Seattle University School of Law began publishing a new journal in 2002 that examines various topics of law where justice and access to justice may be in jeopardy. Seattle Journal for Social Justice examines theoretical, literary and hands-on approaches toward achieving social justice. Each issue covers three to four topics with multiple articles under each topic. Some of the topics included are Civil Liberties Post September 11; Access to Justice; Nuclear Proliferation; International Human Rights & U.S. Foreign Policy; Same-Sex Marriage; TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) Reauthorization; and Militarization.