Court website sees increase in users

The Michigan Supreme Court announced this week that the number of users of its award-winning "One Court of Justice" website (www.courts.mi.gov) increased by 44 percent in 2014, according to Google Analytics. In addition, the number of sessions in 2014 increased by 24 percent and pageviews increased by 14.5 percent over 2013. "The Supreme Court's website is a map of Michigan's justice system," said Chief Justice Robert P. Young, Jr. "That's why we are constantly making improvements to make that map even more accessible and user-friendly." The Supreme Court redesigned and reorganized the website in 2012 so that users could more easily find needed information, including case records, court forms, court rules, statistics, and information on judicial branch agencies, such as the Friend of the Court. Additional data from users indicates that time spent on the site per session is declining, indicating they are finding information more quickly. Retooling of the website is part of the Supreme Court's plan to help Michigan's judiciary become a benchmark for other states in improving service the public. In addition to implementing technology to work smarter, the plan focuses on identifying and adopting best practices and re-engineering courts to share resources and improve efficiency. The Judiciary Dashboard provides court performance information about case disposition times and clearance rates, as well as other important measures. The Driving Change page highlights key administrative reforms implemented in the trial courts to improve service to the public. Among links to many self-help resources, the Michigan Legal Help website is one of the nation's most popular destinations for users who want to represent themselves in court. The Supreme Court has also adopted a more aggressive social media strategy to reach a wider audience and drive more traffic to the website, including a new Facebook page and Twitter feed that recently passed 1,000 followers. The One Court of Justice website earned a "Top 10 Award" in July 2014 from the Forum on the Advancement of Court Technology because the site "expand(s) access to public records, court services and information online." Published: Wed, Jan 14, 2015