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Nearly 90 GCCA members from across the state reconvened March 27-30, 2022, at Brasstown Valley Resort and Spa, for the first in-person GCCA conference since 2019.  It was great to see everyone.  Thank you for making it a great conference.

Our next conference and annual meeting will be held September 11-14, 2022, at the Westin Jekyll Island.  GCCA will celebrate it's 25th Anniversary at the 2022 GCCA Fall Conference.

The Officers and Board Members are pleased to announce that GCCA is returning to in-person conferences for 2022.

The 2022 GCCA Spring Conference will be held March 27-30, 2022, at Brasstown Valley Resort & Spa.  Registration is now open.

The 2022 GCCA Fall Conference will be held September 11-14, 2022, at the Westin Jekyll Island.  Please save the date!

We look forward to seeing you at our 2022 GCCA Conferences.

The membership of GCCA elected its Executive Board at the 2020 Virtual Fall Conference on October 6, 2020.

The 2020-2021 Officers include:

• Robin Rooks, President
• Lynn Ansley, President-Elect
• Joshua Weeks, Vice-President
• Stephanie Hines, Immediate Past President
• Lenora Hawkins Ponzo, Treasurer
• Colin Slay, Secretary

The 2020-2021 Board Members include:

• Kimberly Ciccaglione
• Christopher Hansard
• Kriste Pope
• Dr. Will Simmons

Congratulations to our new Executive Committee!

Discounted Early-Bird Member Registration for the 2020 Spring Conference closes on January 30, 2020.  For more information and to register, please visit our 2020 GCCA Spring Conference page.

Update: This ICM course has been postponed due to low interest.  It will be rescheduled in the future.  We will be adding the ICM course Caseflow and Worlkflow in November.  Check out the Events page for additional information.

The National Center for State Court's Institute for Court Management will host Leadership 2019 in Atlanta, September 25-27, 2019.  The Leadership course will be offered at the Administrative Office of the Courts in Atlanta.  GCCA's very own TJ BeMent will serve as the course instructor.  This course meets a requirement for Level II of the Certified Court Executive Program (CCE).

Early Bird Discount: Register and pay by July 31, 2019, $695.  

After July 31, $745.

Register here: https://courses.ncsc.org/node/213

Registration for the 2019 Spring Conference is now open.  Early Bird Registration ends on March 22, 2019.

Sponsorship opportunities and exhibitor registrations are also open.

Both event pages can be accessed here.

The following is a message from John Botero at the Judicial Council/Administrative Office of the Courts:

Good afternoon,

On Friday, the Judicial Council of Georgia voted to endorse the Model Administrative Protocol from the Commission on Interpreters. In his presentation, Justice Blackwell, commission co-chair, stated that the main purpose of this document is to serve as a guide for all levels of court when assessing and implementing a local language access plan and is not a mandate from the Supreme Court.

As a form of background, In 2015, the Georgia Supreme Court’s Commission on Interpreters received a $15,000 technical assistance grant to develop a model administrative protocol for court interpreting services. The National Center for State Courts made funding for this project available as part of a larger national initiative supported by the State Justice Institute. This grant allowed the Commission to draft an optional, locally adaptable, and step-by-step administrative guide for the provision of language services. The goal of this guide is to help state courts meet their obligations to provide interpreters and other language services. As the first of its kind in Georgia, the Model Administrative Protocol will promote the reliable and efficient provision of language services in state courts throughout Georgia both for persons with limited English proficiency and for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, or if there is anything we can do to assist in helping you develop a local language access plan. We ask you to please disseminate this document to your stakeholders.

Thank you,

John H. Botero

Program Manager, Office of Court Professionals

Judicial Council / Administrative Office of the Courts

Model Administrative Protocol, Final Version copy.pdf

Improve access to justice and increase public trust in the courts by adopting plain language.  NACM's 2019 Plain Language Guide is available free to NACM members.  Not a member?  You can purchase a copy for $10.  Click the link above for more information.

Message from the President

Attached is the Supreme Court decision in the Withers vs. Schroeder case. As you may recall, Mr. Schroeder sued DeKalb County Recorder’s Court after a clerical error resulted in Mr. Schroeder’s arrest and incarceration. The case was heard in DeKalb County Superior Court and dismissed.

However, the Georgia Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal and directed the DeKalb County Judge to reinstate a number of Schroeder’s claims. The panel ruled that Judge Withers and her court administrator were not entitled to judicial and official immunity, as they had been negligent in executing specific administrative duties.

In a decision issued today, the Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that both Judge Withers and Court Administrator Thompson were immune from suit based on judicial immunity and quasi-judicial immunity, respectively. 

We are both relieved and thankful that the Supreme Court recognizes the importance of judicial immunity for not only judges, but also court staff acting at the judge’s direction in fulfilling judicial functions.

Yours in service,

Tracy

Withers v Schroeder Supreme Court Decision.pdf