The statewide Bench Bar Coalition,in partnership with the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), convened regional legislative forums this month in Oakland, Los Angeles, and San Diego. The Coalition invited legislators and their district office directors to these forums for a discussion of issues affecting the Courts that are expected to come before the Legislature in 2006. Legal services staff attended the forums to express their strong support for the Courts’ legislative priorities, which overlap with some of the most pressing issues facing the legal services community – the need for additional funding for legal services, improved access to the courts, and the need for civil interpreters for our clients.

Mr. Vickrey encouraged legislators and their staff to work with the Governor to continue to increase the Equal Access Fund for legal services and to support the current efforts to include the EAF in the State Appropriations Limit (SAL) so that the EAF, like other parts of the state budget, would receive yearly cost-of-living increases. He emphasized the severe need for the creation of additional judgeships through SB 56 (Dunn) and highlighted the fact that this month the Courts in Riverside County were again forced to suspend all civil trials due to a lack of sufficient judges to process the large backlog of criminal cases. Irene Morales, Executive Director of Inland Counties Legal Services, whose service area includes Riverside County, has called the lack of adequate number of judges in the region a "travesty of justice" and hopes that the legislators will pass SB 56 and finally give the county the number of judges it needs.

"The legal services community strongly supports these legislative efforts to ensure better access to the Courts, whether it is through adding the new judgeships so desperately needed, funding for civil interpreters to help our clients, or increasing the Equal Access Fund," says Julia Wilson, Director of the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC), who attended the December 5th Oakland Forum on behalf of LAAC’s member organizations. "These issues are absolutely legal services issues, and our programs are proud to be a part of the Coalition that is educating legislators about the needs of our community relating to access to justice."

The Bench Bar Coalition is a partnership of judges and bar association and legal services organization leaders dedicated to improving the justice system. The Coalition is planning another "Day In Sacramento" in early 2006 to meet with legislators and their staff about the Coalition’s support for these legislative priorities. Legal services staff from around the state were key participants in the two "Days In Sacramento" in 2005 and are encouraged to play an active role in these efforts in 2006. Additional information about the Bench Bar Coalition can be found at:www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courtadmin/aoc/oga.htm.