With support from the Open Society Institute, the American Bar Association (ABA) formed the Commission on the 21st Century Judiciary in 2002. The commission held four hearings in fall 2002 to gather information from a range of experts on the challenges facing state judicial systems. The commission’s draft recommendations were presented at the National Colloquium on the 21st Century Judiciary in March 2003 and revised in response to comments received. The ABA House of Delegates adopted the commission’s recommendations at its 2003 annual meeting.

The commission’s final report, Justice in Jeopardy, identifies a set of enduring principles to maintain an independent, accountable, and effective judiciary in the United States. The commission’s specific recommendations address state judicial selection, diversity in the justice system, court-community relationships, judicial ethics and accountability, and funding of state court systems. In response to the commission’s recommendations on judicial ethics, the ABA has formed the Joint Commission to Evaluate the Model Code of Judicial Conduct, which is undertaking the first comprehensive revision of the ABA Model Code since 1990.