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Mission Statement

The Access to Justice Network’s mission is to provide a collaborative, professional, diverse community of practice for justice system professionals who are interested in improving access to justice.

The Network does not represent a single voice, but rather is a diverse national and international network of justice system professionals within the judicial, government, academic, research, philanthropic, non-profit, and for-profit sectors who provide services to the public and influence civil justice systems and policy.

1. Introduction to Governance Guidelines

The Governance Guidelines outline how the Access to Justice Network will operate, including how its Advisory Board and Committees will function.

The goal of the Access to Justice Network is to work towards a a civil justice system in which every person gets the legal help they need, when they need it, in a format they can use. The Access to Justice Network operates as a multi-constituency network of justice system professions working to improve access to civil justice.

The Access to Justice Network (the Network) grew out of the Self-Represented Litigation Network (SRLN), which operated between 2013 and 2024. The SRLN leadership and Stanford Law School’s Legal Design Lab (the Lab) jointly decided that it was appropriate to rebrand the name of the community to the Access to Justice Network.

The Access to Justice Network is guided by a multi-stakeholder Advisory Board, as described herein, to guide and manage network activities. It also has Working Groups, each led by volunteer co-chairs, and Committees, with members to be appointed depending on the committee purpose.

Key stakeholder groups to participate in the Network’s Advisory Board, Working Groups, Committees, and membership include:

• Courts, including Help Centers
• Legal Aid Organizations
• State and Local Bar Associations and Legal Referral Services
• Librarians, including from Law Libraries, Universities, and Public Libraries
• Academia, including Faculty members, Lab and Clinic staff, and Students
• Judges and Magistrates
• Legal Technologists and Innovators
• Foundations, Philanthropists, and Pro Bono Groups
• Journalists
• Community Based Organizations and Justice Sector groups
• Consultants & Researchers
• Local, State, and Federal Government

These Governance Guidelines provide a structure within which the Advisory Board, Stanford Legal Design Lab, Working Group chairs, and other Network members can effectively pursue the mission of a civil justice system that is accessible, equitable, and effective for all, building off of the legacy of SRLN.

The Guidelines are subject to future refinement or changes as the Stanford Legal Design Lab and the Advisory Board may find necessary or advisable.

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2. The Advisory Board’s Role

The fundamental responsibilities of Advisory Board members are to exercise their judgment, subject matter expertise, and national presence in the access to justice community to act in what they reasonably believe to be the best interests of the Network.

Advisory Board members commit to do the following:

• Preserve the Network’s core mission of improving access to the civil justice system and building a strong community of practice among justice system professionals.

• Support the Lab in its leadership and management of the network, including providing non-binding recommendations to the Lab to enable the Network to achieve its desired impact.

• Preserve and enhance the diversity of the Network, including but not limited to diversity of member constituencies across the continuum of services for self-represented litigants and geographic diversity.

• Strive to achieve a reasonable balance between the interests of the Network’s different stakeholder groups.

• Operate with efficiency and excellence, and at a speed that is responsive to the needs of the Lab, the Network, and the broader access to civil justice community.

Specifically, Advisory Board members commit to playing a leading or supporting role (as so noted) in the core activities of the Network.

• Play a public role as a leader of the Network, to be a strategic connector of members to resources and each other, as well as to shape the strategy of the Network’s Working Groups, conferences, and other events;

• Directly engage with the Network, as necessary and desired by the Lab team, including but not limited to the following activities:
  • Regularly posting items of interest to the email list, at least once per quarter;
  
  
  • Reporting to the Lab and Advisory Board about what developments and needs they have identified for their constituencies, at Advisory Board meetings;
  
  
  • Facilitating network calls in the Advisory Board member’s area of interest and expertise, at least once per year;
  
  
  • Responding to network member inquiries on the email list as often as possible but especially when the inquiry is related to an Advisory Board member’s area of interest and expertise;

• Provide oversight and management to the Network’s Working Groups, as necessary and desired by the Lab team. This may include contribution of new themes and leadership for Working Groups between July and August, or supporting the volunteer co-chairs of Working Groups as they operate between September and June.

• Assist in the Network’s core activities, as necessary and desired by the Lab team, in the following areas:
  • Plan and organize regional network gatherings and network conferences, including a focus on topics that will be meaningful and impactful to the various constituencies;
  
  
  • Track developments across constituencies, including by elevating new issues and initiatives;
  
  
  • Help members find resources and share these with the Network through the email list, working groups, or events;
  
  
  • Spot emerging leaders and provide them with support, mentorship, and connections;
  
  
  • Connect member group constituencies with each other, to find common interests and ways of collaborating;
  
  
  • Qualifying and onboarding new email list members, including review of the standard process by which people can apply to join the Network and the standards by which the Lab team reviews their applications;

Advisory Board members may make recommendations on these or other key indicators to ensure the Network is meeting its goals and upholding its key mission.

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3. Advisory Board Membership

1. Advisory Board Size. The Advisory Board has a minimum of seven (7) members, excluding the Chair and including the Ex Officio members. The Executive Director of the Lab serves as the Co-Chair in partnership with one Board member selected by Board members.

2. Selection and Notice of Advisory Board Members. Members are selected and appointed by the Lab team, in consultation with the Advisory Board. Network participants may self-nominate. Advisory Board members are announced on the Network’s email list and acknowledged on the Network’s webpage.

3. Ex Officio Members of the Advisory Board. Working Group Chairs and the Director of Access to Justice services (or equivalent position that addresses self-represented litigants in the state courts) at the National Center for State Courts.

4. Advisory Board Membership Criteria. The Lab seeks to ensure that the Advisory Board is composed of members who in the aggregate display diversity in background demographics, geography, culture, skills, experience, and perspective. Therefore, Board members should represent courts, legal aid, law libraries, and academia. The Advisory Board is to be comprised of individuals who demonstrate the following criteria, among others:
   1. A history of membership in the Network, or the SRLN before it;
   2. An understanding of, and commitment to, the Network’s mission and vision;
   3. Integrity and objectivity;
   4. Sound judgment and open mind;
   5. Demonstrated capacity for thoughtful group decision-making/
   6. Willingness to contribute, including undertaking administrative work as necessary and required

5. Term Limits. The Advisory Board has determined that it is in the best interest of the network and the Lab to strike a balance between Advisory Board continuity and evolution. Members who serve on the Advisory Board for an extended period of time are able to provide valuable insight into the operations and future of the Network based on their experience with and understanding of the Network’s and SRLN’s history, objectives, and policies. However, term limits ensure that the Advisory Board will continue to evolve with the infusion of fresh ideas and new perspectives. At present, Advisory Board members are not allowed to serve more than 2 consecutive, 3-year terms.

6. Vacancies. A person selected to fill a vacancy in a term shall not be deemed to have served that term.

7. Removal. Advisory Board members may be removed at the discretion of the Executive Director of the Lab, however the Board must also have a minimum of 7 members.

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4. Advisory Board Meetings

1. Meeting Frequency. The Advisory Board will hold a minimum of 2 meetings per year, and may hold additional special meetings as necessary. Each Advisory Board member is expected to attend both scheduled and special meetings, except if unusual circumstances make attendance impractical.

2. Meeting Notice and Agenda. In advance of each Advisory Board meeting, a notice of such meeting and, to the extent known, an agenda for the meeting will be circulated to all Advisory Board members.

3. Meeting Attendance. Advisory Board members should attend all scheduled meetings, including meetings called on an ad hoc basis for special matters. Should a recurring conflict prevent a member’s attendance at the scheduled meetings, that member shall work with the Advisory Board to reschedule the meetings.

4. Meeting Minutes. Advisory Board meeting shall be held via Zoom and recorded. The recordings shall be archived and made available to Board members upon their request, and to others at the discretion of the Executive Director of the Lab. This does not preclude the preparation and distribution of written minutes if that is the will of the Board.

5. Communication of Decisions. Advisory Board recommendations should be communicated in a clear and understandable manner to the Lab, and communicated to the broader community via the email list as appropriate.

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5. Advisory Board Commitees

1. Commitee Number, Type and Composition. The Advisory Board, with approval by the Lab, may establish or eliminate Advisory Board Committees as it deems appropriate. The Advisory Board may also delegate certain functions to Committees (for example, conference planning with the Lab). The composition of each Advisory Board Committee will be determined with due regard to members’ interests, areas of expertise, and skills. If a person appointed to a Committee of the Advisory Board ceases to be a member, the remaining Advisory Committee will determine whether the non-member may remain on the Board.

2. Committee Meetings and Agenda. Each Committee shall have a chair that is responsible for developing the Committee’s general agenda. The chair and Committee members will determine the frequency and length of Committee meetings consistent with the Committee fulfilling its obligations as set forth by the Advisory Board.

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6. Advisory Board Policies

1. An Advisory Board member must comply with the terms and conditions of these Guidelines and policies adopted by the Advisory Board and the Lab, including the Conflicts of Interest policy.
2. An Advisory Board member who knowingly violates these Guidelines, the Conflicts of Interest policy, or other Lab and Stanford University policies may be subject to a system of graduated sanctions, commencing with a formally recorded warning and as a result of repeated offenses leading to removal from the Advisory Board.
3. If an Advisory Board member believes that there has been a violation of these Guidelines, the member should raise the violations with the Lab team,  which shall review the alleged violations and recommend action as appropriate.

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7. Review of Governance Guidelines

The policies and practices memorialized in these Guidelines have developed over time and through experience with past SRLN leadership groups.

The Lab and the Advisory Board expect to review these Guidelines periodically, as appropriate. Such a review should generally include an assessment of the Advisory Board’s compliance with these Guidelines, as well as identification of areas in which the Advisory Board could improve its performance.