The courthouse planning needs assessment sets the stage for the other elements in the design and construction process (I like to call it a catalyst for design/construction). Therefore, the more engaged the court components are in the needs assessment, the better the results for the future of the...

Planning, funding, designing, and constructing a significant renovation project to an existing courthouse or the construction of a new courthouse is lengthy and can take ten years or more. A courthouse plan, or needs assessment, is the first step in the process and includes assessing the court's...

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a public-private partnership team proposal for a new courthouse project for Miami-Dade County. (Ventures of this type are commonly referred to by the shorthand terms PPP or P3.) I have not been heavily involved in the area of P3 ventures in the past;...

In my last article, I discussed the advantages of video-conference hearing rooms. Today, I will present an overview of the basic components that should be included in an ideal video-conference hearing room.

As a follow-up to several comments I recently received about my article, “Top 3 Technology System Concerns that Impact Courthouse Proceedings,” I thought that it might be helpful to focus on one way that technology is improving the functionality of courthouses: the use of videoconference hearing...