Courts have long sought a set of balanced and realistic performance measures that are practical to implement and use. The CourTools performance measures were designed by the National Center for State Courts to answer that call. Measuring court performance can be a challenge. Understanding the steps involved in performance measurement can make the task easier and more likely to succeed. CourTools supports efforts toward improved court performance by helping:

• Clarify performance goals
• Develop a measurement plan
• Document success

The CourTools present a set of 10 measures for Trial Courts and 6 measures for Appellate Courts to create performance targets and metrics around court case processing, service provision, organizational efficiency, and employee satisfaction.