The Judicial Council at its Oct. 16 business meeting adopted updated parameters to help assess judicial need in trial courts. The council also approved changes to court interpreter policies and heard a presentation about the importance of guardianship ahead of Adoption and Permanency Month.

(Subscription required) After more than a decade handling family law cases, Commissioner James T. Atkins knows the limits of judicial intervention but remains committed to helping families navigate their most difficult conflicts.

Although substantial disparities remain, California’s attorneys continue to become more representative of the state population, with newly admitted attorneys the primary driver of this gradual progress.

(Subscription required) The appeals court ruled that California cannot require federal law enforcement officers to display their agency and badge numbers, finding that the law violates the constitutional principle of intergovernmental immunity.