California Judicial Council 2008 Snapshot Study: Center for Families, Children and the Courts - 75 Percent of Litigants Self-Represented

This Research Update provides an overview of the major findings from the 2008 Statewide Uniform Statistical Reporting System—also known as the Snapshot Study—conducted by the Administrative Office of the Courts, Center for Families, Children & the Courts. The 2008 study was the sixth since 1991 and involved surveys of parents and mediators involved in court-based child custody mediation sessions statewide during a one-week period in June 2008.

 

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

INSTITUTIONALIZED BIAS BY SACRAMENTO COUNTY JUDGES AGAINST FINANCIALLY DISADVANTAGED, SELF-REPRESENTED LITIGANTS CONFIRMED BY FEDERAL JUDGE

A federal judge has broken the code of silence and confessed what self-represented court users in California - and Sacramento County Superior Court - have asserted for years.

In multiple interviews, United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner disclosed that most judges regard pro per litigants as "kind of trash not worth the time."

The California Supreme Court, courts of appeal and trial courts have always operated a two-track system of justice, according to court whistleblowers. One for those who can afford to hire a lawyer, and a separate system for those who can't.

"Judge Posner has admitted what no active judge in California will ever admit in public. From the trial courts to the Supreme Court, the poor who can't afford to pay for an attorney and are forced to represent themselves in court are treated as second class citizens," said whistleblower Ulf Carlsson. "California courts are pay-to-play." 

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

ABA Journal: Posner: Most judges regard pro se litigants as 'kind of trash not worth the time.'

Above the Law: The Backstory Behind Judge Richard Posner's Retirement.

Chicago Daily Law Bulletin: Posner says friction on 7th Circuit bench led to his retirement.

New York Times: An Exit Interview With Richard Posner, Judicial Provocateur 

Above the Law: Judge Posner, Uncensored: 'I Don't Really Care What People Think.'