Programs

Program Evaluation

RSI is committed to helping courts to obtain information about their programs so that they can make the necessary changes to make them more effective. Intrinsic to this is to have a monitoring and evaluation system in place. RSI has designed such systems for court mediation programs and advances their use in courts throughout Illinois:

  • Court Mediation Effectiveness Tracking System: CMETS is a customized evaluation system that includes reporting and evaluation forms, data collection software, and reporting options. Databases have been designed specifically for courts with mediation programs in Illinois to gather and evaluate data on their programs for large civil litigation mediation and domestic relations mediation. Regularly produced reports compare resolution rates across case types, and among mediators and referring judges, as well as participant satisfaction statistics. RSI has supplied the civil mediation software to nine Illinois circuit courts and one U.S. District court and the domestic relations software to one circuit.
  • Major Civil Litigation Mediation Statistical Report Summary: This regularly-updated report tracks the statistics of each of the participating Illinois circuits, including the types of case, the number of cases mediated and the cases that reached resolution.
  • Judicial Settlement Conference Software: This database assists federal magistrates in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois to better manage settlement conferences by providing them with information on those that reach agreement. Data includes case type, stage of litigation at the time of the conference, opening demand and offer, and final settlement terms.

Additionally, RSI conducts independent evaluations of court mediation programs. To date, evaluations have been conducted for:
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Lanham Act Mediation Program: This study determined the number and outcomes of mediation in the Lanham Act Mediation Program in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and explored the attitudes of attorneys and neutrals about the program and mediation as a whole.
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Western Division: This study looked at the functioning of the mediation program in its first year. Variables examined were referral rate, resolution rate, time from referral to mediation, and participant evaluations of their experience with mediation.
  • Second Judicial Circuit Judicial Mediation Program: This study examined the outcomes of the first 15 months of the Second Judicial Circuit's judicial mediation program for custody and visitation disputes. Included in the report are the issues mediated, the resolution rate, time spent in mediation, the parents' perception of their experience, and the mediator's perceptions of the process.
  • Cook County Circuit Court Child Dependency Mediation Program: This evaluation examined the process, outcomes, and participant experience of the mediation program over a one-year period.

When conducting evaluations of programs, RSI abides by the American Evaluation Association's Guiding Principles for Evaluators.