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| Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement |
In "uncertain times," Justice Clement said, her role and her organization's role is the "vitally important" one of keeping state court systems independent of partisan fights and focused on upholding the rule of law.
"It is imperative that our branch of government, the judicial branch of government, is nonpartisan," Justice Clement said. "You have states across the country that are red or blue or purple — none of that matters when it comes to the judicial branch."
From improved data collection to juvenile justice reform, Justice Clement said she has focused on improving the functioning of the state's judiciary throughout her time on the Michigan Supreme Court. Now, she's turning that attitude toward the rest of the country.
Justice Clement has been chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court since 2022 and has been on the court since 2017. She announced her plans in February to step down from the court at the end of April.
Justice Clement has worked in all branches of government, having previously served as chief legal counsel, cabinet secretary and deputy chief of staff to former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder before joining the court. She also worked earlier in her career as legal counsel and policy adviser for the Michigan Senate majority office.
Justice Clement's move to the leadership of the National Center for State Courts is a major transition for the organization, which had been under the leadership of Mary McQueen for 20 years until she announced her plans to step down in August. The organization grew significantly during that time, expanding its budget from $27 million to over $100 million and diversifying the kind of work it does.
The NCSC works closely with the Conference of Chief Justices, Conference of State Court Administrators and other groups. It researches innovation in how court systems operate, provides education and training, and features an international programs team that works to promote rule of law projects around the world.
McQueen praised the choice of Justice Clement to succeed her, saying in a statement that she "brings the right blend of innovative court leadership and effective inter-branch experience. Her extensive problem-solving experience and track record of successfully building coalitions and managing crises positions NCSC well for the future."
Justice Clement, likewise, said McQueen's work as president was "incredible."
"We can't honor Mary too much," Justice Clement said.
Justice Clement said McQueen has already been helpful in the leadership handoff, but one key lesson she took from her predecessor has been that the staff's belief in the NCSC's mission and the value of state courts have made the organization a success.
"I hope to continue that and make sure that under my leadership, everyone at the National Center has that passion for the mission of the center," Justice Clement said.
Justice Clement joined Law360 Pulse to discuss her plans for the center and her accomplishments in the Michigan judiciary. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Why did you want to take on this position at the NCSC?
In our state courts is where most people, everyday people, deal with the problems that they're facing. I think the percentage is like 99% of legal actions take place in state courts.
I have seen firsthand, being involved in the Michigan judiciary, how important state courts are to the people that we serve, but I've also had the opportunity to work with the National Center over the years, and seeing the work that they provide and the services that they provide to help drive all state courts toward innovation and progress and really thinking outside the box of how can we serve the public better.
This is an opportunity to help lead that positive change across the country, and not just in the state of Michigan. That's work that I've been doing with my colleagues and with the tremendous staff in Michigan, and this is an opportunity to be able to do that and take it nationwide.
What have you been able to accomplish in the Michigan judiciary?
Most recently, and I think what's most important for Michigan, we are implementing a statewide case management system. We have a nonunified judicial system in Michigan with multiple funding units, multiple case management systems. It makes it very, very difficult to compare apples to apples when looking at data and helping policymakers — whether that's in the legislative branch or the executive branch or even in the judicial branch — make informed decisions.
Implementing a statewide case management system will allow us to have everyone collecting the same data, being able to measure how the judiciary is serving the public, and is responding to potential policy changes. That is very important and probably the key thing that we're focused on in Michigan.
I've also been very involved in juvenile justice reform in Michigan, something that I have personally and professionally been very engaged in almost my entire career. I was able to serve on the governor's task force on juvenile justice, we made a number of recommendations and all but one have successfully made it through the legislative and rulemaking process so, very proud of everyone's efforts and work on that — it was a long time coming.
There were 38 recommendations, so it was a very significant package, really looking at the youth in the juvenile justice system and making sure that the system is serving the youth, their family, and the community and using evidence-based practices.
Some examples of that would be, are we detaining youth that would be better served by community resources? And how do we support those community resources that are evidence-based to support that youth and their family to keep a young person from being engaged in the juvenile justice system?
What are your goals for your time leading the NCSC?
One of the best things at the National Center is they have a reputation because of their long history of being highly regarded as a resource for state courts across the country, and I want to make sure that that legacy is supported, expanded, and that we are thinking of the future and what's coming in the future.
There are so many areas, whether that's technology, whether it's data, whether it's providing research, so that one state can say, "Hey, you know, the other state has seen these improvements in eviction diversion. How do we get there?" It's being able to understand what those priorities are and provide the services to help those states and those courts to achieve those.
It's very important to me, because I'm coming from the position of a justice on the Supreme Court, and a chief justice on the Supreme Court, that all of the stakeholders, and all of the partners that the National Center has — because there's many, it's not just chief justices and it's not just state court administrators, but it's so many individuals that really are the heart and soul of the judicial branch as far as the day-to-day work — that they understand that I know that we could not do any of this work without them, and really listening to what they believe the needs are of the judicial branch, and then meeting those needs.
--Editing by Nicole Bleier.