International Activities at the FJC

International Activities at the FJC

The Federal Judicial Center's statutory mission includes a mandate to provide information to help improve the administration of justice in foreign countries and to acquire information about the judicial systems of other nations that will improve the administration of justice in the courts of the United States. Each year the Center hosts delegations of judges, attorneys, court officials, and scholars from around the world at its offices in the Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building in Washington, D.C. These sessions provide information about the United States legal and judicial systems as well as an overview of the Center's education and research activities.

At the invitation and with the financial support of the U.S. government, foreign judiciaries, or international development organizations, Center staff works with foreign courts and judicial training centers on technical assistance projects abroad. This outreach has included judicial and court education programs with the Russian Academy of Justice; a caseload tracking and reporting assessment for the High Court in Lusaka, Zambia; a U.S./Council of Europe judicial reform assessment in Kosovo; and assistance with the implementation of a new case calendaring initiative in Trinidad and Tobago. The International Judicial Relations Office also can identify U.S. judges, court managers, and public defenders with expertise relevant for a particular international rule of law program or court reform project.

Travel and other direct costs of the Center's international programs are funded by outside sources. Participation by Center employees is secondary to their primary research and education responsibilities to the federal judicial system.

To learn more about FJC international programs and materials, please contact us at ijr@fjc.gov or Download a PDF brochure describing international programs at the Federal Judicial Center.