On Thursday, August 20, 2015, Chief Justice Jean Hoefer Toal addressed members of South Carolina's Judiciary at the Annual Judicial Conference. Justice Toal welcomed new circuit court judges, Roger E. Henderson, Peter Gravely and Tanya Gee; and new family court judges, Alice Anne Richter and Cely Anne Brigman. Toal recognized Chief Justice-Elect Costa Pleicones, whose term begins January 1, 2016.

Justice Toal reviewed a report card for South Carolina's courts and discussed court funding. She highlighted the leadership and accomplishments of the Docket Management Task Force which include the faster delivery of justice, backlog reduction and accountability. Toal also highlighted recent reductions in the backlog of cases in the Supreme Court.

Justice Toal's update on technology for the South Carolina courts included milestones for the appellate court case management system. She noted the increased public access to the Supreme Court enhanced by the broadcast of all oral arguments and the public access component of the Appellate Case Management System. With the E-Filing system implementation, plans are underway to train all attorneys. Online webinars, attorney reference guides and training videos, produced in partnership with SCETV, will all serve as important tools for attorneys to learn to use the system effectively.

Toal also discussed South Carolina's business courts and highlighted the Access to Justice Commission charged with designing and implementing strategies for civil legal assistance for low-income South Carolinians.

A copy of her PowerPoint presentation is available in PDF format below.