Kevin Burke
Profile
Kevin Burke, a Minneapolis trial judge since 1984, is one of the most recognized leaders within the American judiciary. He served several terms as chief judge of the Hennepin County (Minn.) District Court, a 62-judge court, where he instituted social-science studies examining—and reforms improving—procedural fairness. Burke coauthored the American Judges Association's white paper on procedural fairness in 2007. Since then, he and his white paper coauthor, Kansas judge Steve Leben, have presented on procedural fairness to more than 2,000 state and federal judges.
Burke received the William H. Rehnquist Award from the National Center for State Courts in 2003, an award presented annually to the state judge who most exemplifies the highest level of judicial excellence, integrity, fairness, and professional ethics. He has received many other awards, including trial judge of the year by the Minnesota chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates in 2005; Public Official of the Year by Governing magazine in 2004; the Distinguished Service Award from the National Center for State Courts in 2002; and the Director's Community Leadership Award from the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1997.
Burke presently serves as president of the American Judges Association. He regularly lectures to judges throughout the United States and Canada, and he also teaches at two law schools: he teaches trial practice at the University of Minnesota law school and criminal procedure at the University of St. Thomas law school.
Representative Publications
"Just What Made Drug Courts Successful?," 36 New Eng. J. Crim. & Civ. Confinement 39 (2010); "Understanding the International Rule of Law as a Commitment to Procedural Fairness," 18 Minn. J. Int'l L. 357 (2009); "The Evolution of the Trial Judge from Counting Case Dispositions to a Commitment to Fairness," 18 Widener L.J. 397 (2009) (coauthored with Steve Leben); "Procedural Fairness: A Key Ingredient in Public Satisfaction," 44 Court Review 4 (2007-2008) (coauthored with Steve Leben); "An Opportunity for Leadership Is Lost," 55 Drake L. Rev. 611 (2007); "State v. Dettman: The End of the Sentencing Revolution or Just the Beginning?," 33 Wm. Mitchell L. Rev. 1331 (2007); "A Judiciary That Is as Good as Its Promise: The Best Strategy for Preserving Judicial Independence," Court Review, Summer 2004, at 4; "A Court and a Judiciary That Is as Good as Its Promise," Court Review, Summer 2003, at 4.
Education
J.D., 1975, University of Minnesota; B.A., 1972, University of Minnesota, political science, summa cum laude; Reflective Leadership Program (1984-85), Ethics and Public Policy Program (1986), University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.
Career History
Assistant Public Defender, Hennepin County Public Defenders Office, 1975-79; Partner, Ranum, Quackenbush & Burke, 1979-80; Partner, Chestnut & Brooks, P.A., 1980-84; District Judge, Hennepin County (Minn.) District Court, 1984-present (Chief Judge, 1992-96 and 2000-04; Assistant Chief Judge, 1989-1992 and 1998-2000; Presiding Judge, Drug Court, 1997-2000).
Member
American Judges Association (president); American Judicature Society (member, Board of Directors, 2004-present); Editorial Board, Justice System Journal (1997-present); Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, University of Denver (member, Advisory Board, 2006-present); National Center for State Courts (past member, Board of Directors, 1995-2001).
Steve Leben
Profile
Steve Leben is a nationally recognized authority on improving judicial practices to enhance procedural fairness; he coauthored a white paper on procedural fairness for the American Judges Association in 2007. Since then, Leben and his white-paper coauthor, Minnesota trial judge Kevin Burke, have presented on procedural fairness to more than 2,000 state and federal judges.
Leben has published 14 law-review articles in the areas of procedural justice, administrative law, civil procedure, family law, and evidence. His scholarly publications have been cited by state and federal courts in Kansas and in more than 75 law-journal articles by other authors. Leben has edited a national publication for judges, Court Review, since 1998, and he received the Distinguished Service Award from the National Center for State Courts in 2003 for his work toward the improvement of the American judiciary.
Leben also has taught the Legislation class at the University of Kansas School of Law since 2007; his course focuses on statutory interpretation. Leben's teaching is informed by regular experience interpreting statutes as an appellate judge, nearly 14 years as a trial judge, and 11 years of law practice.
Representative Publications
"The Evolution of the Trial Judge from Counting Case Dispositions to a Commitment to Fairness," 18 Widener L.J. 397 (2009) (coauthored with Kevin Burke); "Commenting on Credibility in Kansas: A Constructive Criticism of State v. Pabst," 56 Kan. L. Rev. 869 (2008); "Procedural Fairness: A Key Ingredient in Public Satisfaction," 44 Court Review 4 (2007-2008); "Thoughts on Some Potential Appellate and Trial Court Applications of Therapeutic Jurisprudence," 24 Seattle U. L. Rev. 467 (2001); "A Kansas Approach to Custodial Parent Move-Away Cases," 37 Washburn L.J. 497 (1998) (coauthored with Megan Moriarty); "Restoring the Common in the Law: A Proposal for the Elimination of Rules Prohibiting the Citation of Unpublished Opinions in Kansas and the Tenth Circuit," 31 Washburn L.J. 155 (1992) (coauthored with Mark D. Hinderks).
Education
J.D., University of Kansas, 1982, Associate Editor, Kansas Law Review; B.S., journalism, University of Kansas, 1978.
Career History
Press Secretary, U.S. Rep. Bob Whittaker (R.-Kan.), 1979; Associate, Stinson, Mag & Fizzell (now Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP), 1982-88; Solo Practice, 1988-1993; District Judge, Johnson County (Kan.), 1993-2007; Judge, Kansas Court of Appeals, since 2007; Lecturer, University of Kansas School of Law, since 2007.
Member
American Law Institute (elected member); American Judges Association (past president); American Bar Association, Judicial Division and Administrative Law Section (member, State Administrative Law Committee); Kansas Bar Association; Editorial Board, Justice System Journal; Kansas Judicial Council, Administrative Procedure Advisory Committee; KU Law Alumni Association (president-elect); Order of the Coif.
David Rottman
Profile
David Rottman is a researcher at the National Center for State Courts, where he took a lead role in California's public trust and confidence research project in 2004 and 2005. That study provided key data documenting the effects of procedural fairness as a key ingredient in public satisfaction with the courts. In 2000, he directed a national survey of "Perceptions of the Courts in Your Community," which compared perceptions of procedural fairness of recent court users to others and across racial and ethnic groups.
A sociologist by academic training, Rottman has worked at the National Center for State Courts since 1987. His research interests include public opinion of the courts, problem-solving courts, minority-group perceptions of the courts, judicial selection, and judicial-performance evaluations.
Representative Publications
Books and Monographs: Trust and Confidence in the California Courts, 2005: A Survey of the Public and Attorneys. Report commissioned by the Administrative Office of the Courts on behalf of the Judicial Council of California, September 2005, available at www.courtinfo.ca.gov/reference/4_ 37pubtrust.htm; Perceptions of the Courts in Your Community (2003) Dispensing Justice Locally: The Implementation and Effects of the Midtown Community Court (2000) (coauthored with M. Sviridoff, B. Ostrom, and R. Curtis); Class Stratification: A Comparative Perspective (1995) (coauthored with Richard Breen); Understanding Contemporary Ireland: State, Class and Development in the Republic of Ireland (1990) (coauthored with R. Breen, D. Hannan, and C. Whelan).
Articles: "Procedural Fairness as a Court Reform Agenda," 41 Court Review 32 (2008); "Conduct and its Oversight in Judicial Elections: Can Friendly Persuasion Outperform the Power to Regulate?," 21 Georgetown J. Legal Ethics 1295 (2008); "Adhere to Procedural Fairness Throughout the Justice System," Criminology & Public Policy, 2007); "Problem-Solving Courts: Models and Trends," 26 Justice System Journal 35 (2005) (coauthored with Pamela M. Casey); "What Makes Judicial Elections Unique?," 34 Loyola L.A. L. Rev. 1369 (2001) (coauthored with Roy A. Schotland). Other articles have appeared in American Sociological Review, Sociology, and the Journal of Court Management.
Education
B.A., 1971, urban planning, with highest honors, University of Illinois; M.A., sociology, 1973, University of Illinois; Ph.D., sociology, 1975, University of Illinois.
Career History
Visiting Associate Professor of Sociology, The University of Connecticut, 1986-87; Senior Research Officer (1982-1992), Research Officer (1975-1982), The Economic and Social Research Institute, Dublin, Ireland; Senior Research Associate (1987-1995), Associate Director of Research (1995-2002), and Principal Court Research Consultant (2002-present), National Center for State Courts, Williamsburg, Virginia.
Member
American Psychology-Law Society, American Association for Public Opinion Research, American Society of Criminology, and Law and Society Association.
Tom Tyler
Profile
Tom Tyler has been recognized as the leading academic thinking about and studying procedural fairness since the publication of his book, Why People Obey the Law, in 1990. His research focuses on authority dynamics within organized groups, and his research has demonstrated that the legitimacy of authorities and institutions. like courts, is strongly linked to judgments about fairness. He is the author or editor of more than a dozen books and more than one hundreds articles.
Tyler's work served as the basis for efforts to redesign California state courts as part of a procedural-fairness initiative there over the past several years. He has also been active in studying the police and policing models in Chicago, California, and New York.
Tyler is presently Chair of Psychology and University Professor of Psychology at New York University; effective January 2012, he will be a professor of law and psychology at Yale Law School.
Representative Publications
Books: Why People Obey the Law (1st ed. 1990; 2d ed. 2006); Trust in the Law: Encouraging Public Cooperation with the Police and Courts (2002) (coauthored with Yuen J. Huo); The Social Psychology of Procedural Justice (1988) (coauthored with E. Allan Lind); Social Justice in a Diverse Society (1997) (coauthored with Robert J. Boeckmann, Heather J. Smith, and Yuen J. Huo.
Articles: "Procedural Justice and the Courts," 44 Court Review 26 (2008); "The Role of Procedural Justice and Legitimacy in Shaping Public Support for Policing," 37 Law & Soc'y Rev. 513 (2003); "Procedural Justice, Legitimacy, and the Effective Rule of Law," 30 Crime & Justice 283 (2003).
Education
B.A., 1973 (psychology), Columbia University; Ph.D. 1978, M.A. 1974 (social psychology), University of California at Los Angeles.
Click here to view Professor Tyler's full curriculum vitae.