Judiciary
Task Force Description
The ALEC Judiciary Task Force develops model policy solutions on criminal and civil justice matters. Currently, nearly one in every 100 American adults is behind bars and once released from prison more than four in ten return within three years. This failing system costs federal, state, and local governments approximately $85 billion, yet does not deliver adequate public safety results for taxpayers, victims, and individuals. In addition, our current criminal justice system places tremendous human costs on society.
In response, the American Legislative Exchange Council began its work in criminal justice and aimed to advance proven criminal justice reforms based on over two decades of data-driven research and practice. Members of the Judiciary Task Force advance solutions that refocus criminal justice resources on dangerous individuals and put the right programs in place to hold those who commit nonviolent offenses accountable while providing them with the resources they need to successfully reenter society.
On civil justice, the Judiciary Task Force and its members are at the forefront of the efforts to restore fairness and predictability to the civil justice system. The Task Force has developed model policy to protect the legal system from frivolous litigation that threatens its reliability, strains judicial resources and cripples businesses’ ability to innovate, employ and engender economic prosperity. We bring together legal scholars, state lawmakers and industry representatives to craft targeted reforms that minimize loopholes, oust outrageous legal theories, align lawsuits with commonsense liability, and make the legal system a better arbiter of the free market economy.
This work has resulted in the development of over 75 diligently developed model policies that balance justice in such areas as consumer protection liability, judicial overreach, asbestos litigation, workers’ compensation, product liability, anti-SLAPP public speech protection, jury service, sue and settle regulatory expansion and more.
Meeting Information
Wednesday, Dec. 3
1:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.
1:45 p.m. Introductions
1:50 p.m. Presentation: Technology Meets Humanity: Protecting Victims and Pursuing Justice Against Trafficking
2:00 p.m. Model Policy Renewals:
- Ban the Box on Employment Applications Act
- Resolution to Treat 17-Year-Olds as Juveniles
- Resolution Opposing Anti-Indemnity and Anti-Additional Insured Legislation
2:10 p.m. Model Policy Amendments: Phantom Damages Elimination Act
2:20 p.m. Model Policy Amendments: Act to Regulate the Use of the Colorimetric Presumptive Field Drug
Test
2:30 p.m. New Model Policy: Gavin’s Law Act
2:40 p.m. New Model Policy: An Act to Establish a Court Appearance Reminder Program and Reduce Failure to Appear
2:55 p.m. New Model Policy: Freedom of Expression Protection Act
3:10 p.m. New Model Policy: Campaign Finance Due Process Protection Act
3:25 p.m. New Model Policy: Model Human Trafficking Identification and Reporting Act
3:45 p.m. New Model Policy: Survivor Justice Act
4:05 p.m. New Model Policy: Public Safety and Judicial Accountability Act
4:25 p.m. New Model Policy: Stopping Early Clearance of Unfit, Repeat, and Endangering Defendants (SECURE) Act
4:45 p.m. Adjournment
Draft Policies
- Amendments to The Act to Regulate the Use of the Colorimetric Presumptive Field Drug Test
- Amendments to The Phantom Damages Elimination Act
- Gavin’s Law Act
- Human Trafficking Identification and Reporting Act
- Campaign Finance Due Process Protection Act
- Survivor Justice Act
- Freedom of Expression Protection Act
- Public Safety and Judicial Accountability Act
- Stopping Early Clearance of Unfit, Repeat, and Endangering Defendants (SECURE) Act
- An Act to Establish a Court Appearance Reminder Program and Reduce Failure to Appear
- Resolution Opposing Anti-Indemnity and Anti-Additional Insured Legislation
- Resolution to Treat 17-Year-Olds As Juveniles
- Ban the Box on Employment Applications Act
All Model Policies
-
Amendments to The Act to Regulate the Use of the Colorimetric Presumptive Field Drug Test Draft
See Amendments Here MODEL POLICY TO REGULATE THE USE OF THE COLORIMETRIC PRESUMPTIVE FIELD DRUG TEST (a) For purposes of this section, the following term has the following meaning: (1) “Colorimetric field drug test” means a field-testing drug kit that consists of color test reagents for the preliminary…
-
Amendments to The Phantom Damages Elimination Act Draft
See Amendments Here Section 1. {Title}. This Act may be known as the Phantom Damages Elimination Act. Section 2. {Purpose}. The purpose of this section is to prevent compensatory damage awards for medical expenses from including amounts that the claimant has not and will…
-
Gavin’s Law Act Draft
Be it enacted by this legislative chamber: An ACT to Amend this State’s Code of Laws by Enacting “Gavin’s Law” by Adding a Section to Create the Offenses Of “Sexual Extortion” and “Aggravated Sexual Extortion,” to Define Necessary Terms, and to Provide Penalties for Violations. Section 1. …
-
Human Trafficking Identification and Reporting Act Draft
Section 1. {Short Title.} This Act shall be known and may be cited as the “Human Trafficking Identification and Reporting Act.” Section 2. {Legislative Findings.} (A) Finding 1. Human trafficking is a pervasive crime that often goes undetected. National statistics indicate that hundreds of thousands of people are trafficked…
-
Campaign Finance Due Process Protection Act Draft
(A) The legislature recognizes that the provisions of this [INSERT APPROPRIATE REFERENCE] are penal in nature, and that, in the interest of respecting the constitutional rights of free speech and due process, the regulation of campaign finance established in this [INSERT APPROPRIATE REFERENCE] shall…
-
Survivor Justice Act Draft
Section 1. Short Title This Act shall be known and may be cited as the “Survivor Justice Act.” Section 2. Purpose and Findings (a) Findings. The legislature finds that: (1) In many criminal prosecutions, survivors of human trafficking, domestic violence,…