Sarah J. Ellenberg

This document outlines the Superior Court of Los Angeles County's 2025-2028 Strategic Plan, which serves to guide the court's mission of providing equal access to justice through fair, timely, and effective case resolution. The plan is structured around five key strategic themes: enhancing accessibility and transforming the court user experience, building the public's trust, streamlining case resolution and court operations, developing an engaged and future-ready workforce and judicial bench, and fostering an innovative, agile, and forward-looking court. These pillars are designed to uphold democracy and ensure that justice is accessible, impartial, and grounded in the rule of law.

The Judicial Council of California's strategic direction is centered on transforming the court experience and ensuring access to justice for all Californians. Key pillars include unifying and improving justice administration, modernizing court technology for remote access and online services, providing comprehensive self-help services, and expanding language access support. The plan also emphasizes the development of safe, secure, and sustainable courthouses. The overall vision aims to foster public trust, uphold judicial independence, maintain high-quality standards, and adapt responsibly to the evolving demands of the state.

The Judicial Council's governance policies focus on ensuring the consistent, independent, impartial, and accessible administration of justice within California's court system. Key areas include establishing broad goals and policies for continuous improvement, setting standards for performance and accountability, developing administrative and technological infrastructures, securing appropriate funding, sponsoring legislation, and fostering professional development. The policies emphasize strategic leadership, alignment with judicial branch goals, and consultation with stakeholders to enhance public trust and confidence in the courts.

The strategic plan for language access in the California courts focuses on improving early identification and data collection on language needs, providing qualified language access services in all judicial proceedings and at all points of contact outside judicial proceedings, ensuring high-quality multilingual translation and signage, expanding language access through recruitment and training of providers, providing judicial branch training on language access policies, conducting community outreach, and identifying necessary systems, funding, and legislation for plan implementation and management. The plan aims to ensure equal access to justice for limited English proficient (LEP) Californians by addressing language barriers in the court system.

The action plan focuses on improving services for self-represented litigants by developing court-based self-help centers, offering support services, and allocating judicial and staff resources effectively. It emphasizes judicial branch education, public outreach, and the strategic use of court facilities to enhance access to justice. The plan also addresses the fiscal impact and implementation strategies for statewide improvements.