Your Vote Counts

A fair and efficient state judiciary can have a positive impact on every aspect of economic and public life in Kentucky. However, voting records illustrate that many Kentuckians simply don't participate in the process of electing qualified judges. Participation in selecting individuals for judicial offices nearly always trails that of legislative and executive offices.

Barely one-third of registered voters participated in judicial races in 2006, a year in which almost every judicial seat in the state was on the ballot. The average turnout for contested judicial races that year was 38.9 percent -- 10.6 percent lower than the overall statewide turnout of 49.5 percent.

An Inefficient Judicial System Costs Taxpayers. . .

Furthermore, a court system clogged with meaningless and superficial cases, particularly in civil courts, makes real justice difficult to achieve for the deserving and far too expensive for everyone else.

The Manhattan Institute for Public Policy reports that the cost of tort litigation in the United States in 2006 was $247 billion -- consuming 1.87 percent of the gross national product.

. . .And Hurts Kentucky's Economy

Unfortunately, we are worse off in Kentucky than in most states. The Institute for Legal Reform ranks Kentucky in the bottom half of all the states for fairness of our litigation environment – a fact that makes business and industry think twice before locating new jobs and investment in our commonwealth.

The Problem is Getting Worse

In a 2008 State of the Judiciary presentation to the Kentucky General Assembly's Interim Judiciary Committee, Chief Justice John D. Minton painted a vivid picture of the growing problem in Kentucky:

There were 1.23 million new cases filed in Kentucky trial courts in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008 – an increase of 40,000 new cases over 2007. New case filings are at an all time high, said Minton.

That's an average of over 4,700 cases filed every week day in Kentucky.

Kentuckians Want a Judicial System that Works.

Studies show that Kentuckians overwhelming agree with the Partnership for Commonsense Justice that an efficient court system is important.

The Legislative Research Commission's Long-Term Policy Research Center has identified 26 long-term goals considered key in moving Kentucky forward (Visioning Kentucky's Future). Goal #25 was to ensure a fair, equitable and effective system of justice. In a 2006 survey only 25% of Kentuckians saw the state making progress toward the goal. However, the priority had risen to the rank of #9 in terms of importance to Kentuckians in 2006, up seven places since 1998.