August 18-20, 2026 12-4PM Eastern time each day

Click the Registration Information hyperlink below for the registration link and more details.

Course description:

Courts need staff who can understand, interpret, and use data to support better decisions. NCSC's Data Literacy for Courts course gives court leaders and staff the practical skills to confidently read, understand, and communicate about court data. If you work with or use court data, this course is for you. No background in data is required.

Data is one of a court's most underused assets. When staff at every level can read, question, and apply data, court leaders make better decisions, optimize processes, and measure what's actually working. Data literacy also creates a shared language across roles, helping teams collaborate more effectively on data quality and performance.

The Data Literacy for Courts course is designed for a wide range of court professionals, including court administrators, judges, clerks, IT staff, analysts, new hires in research and data offices, and any court professional interested in court data.

As a result of participating in this course, participants will be able to:

• Define data literacy and data governance in the context of court data.


• Describe why data are considered strategic assets of the courts.


• Outline best practices of data quality and data visualization.


• Analyze data reports and visualizations for appropriate and inappropriate use of data.


• Explain the consequences of poor data governance.


• Articulate the concept of a public access policy.


• Describe how poor-quality data visualizations mislead and can lower trust and confidence in the courts.