At the groundbreaking National Summit on Human Trafficking and the State Courts, teams of four from each state including the Chief Justice, the State Court Administrator, a judge or court leader, and a stakeholder or other individual from the courts or the community joined their colleagues from other states for a packed program.
Over a day and a half beginning early on the morning of October 8, the program explored the serious and challenging issue of human trafficking from a judicial perspective, examined ways to work with justice partners in our communities to better address trafficking, and showcased different court models from all around the country. In addition, it provided state teams with a prime opportunity to network with other court leaders and to develop concrete steps to further advance a response to human trafficking in each team’s own state.
The Summit was hosted by Jonathan Lippman, then-Chief Judge of New York State and Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals, and was sponsored by and planned in partnership with the State Justice Institute, the Conference of Chief Justices, the Conference of State Court Administrators, the National Center for State Courts, the Human Trafficking and State Courts Collaborative, the New York State Bar Association, the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, and the New York State Office of Court Administration.
Featured speakers and panelists included Cindy McCain, the chair of the Arizona Human Trafficking Council; Judge Fernando Camacho, originator of the first human trafficking court in New York; Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens; New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, and judges from all across the country, including California, Minnesota, Texas, Louisiana, and Ohio, who shared their insights and experiences.