About the ARJD
On February 12, 1982, at the United States Supreme Court in Washington, DC, 13 Reporters of Decisions and their assistants gathered to discuss the possibility of forming a national organization. The meeting was hosted by Henry C. Lind, the Reporter of Decisions for the Supreme Court. Supreme Court Justice Byron R. White addressed the gathering. Mr. Lind had invited every American Reporter of Decisions he could find. From the 27 state and 5 federal reporters contacted, Mr. Lind received 25 affirmative responses. The group unanimously adopted Mr. Lind's resolution calling for the formation of a national association, although no final decision was made as to the organization's title.
A second organizational meeting was held in July 1982 at the Maryland Court of Appeals. At that time, the group adopted bylaws and selected the name "National Association of Reporters of Judicial Decisions." All present were enrolled as charter members, and the ARJD's first meeting was convened. Henry C. Lind was elected president. Shortly after the ARJD's founding, the word "National" was dropped when the group attracted an international membership.
Today, the ARJD has members from the United States, Canada, Colombia, England and Wales, Ghana, Ireland, Kenya, and Mexico. Reporters of Decisions prepare their courts' opinions for publication. This may include: editing opinions for accuracy, standardization of format, and style; proofreading for grammatical, typographical, and factual errors; drafting headnotes and syllabuses; preparing tables of cases, indexes, and digests; and publishing the official opinions and other materials in electronic and print formats.
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CHARTER MEMBERS:
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Neill H. Alford, Jr., VIRGINIA SUPREME COURT
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John A. Cutts III, UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ARMED FORCES
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John I. Fee, UNITED STATES TAX COURT
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William H. Lewis, MICHIGAN SUPREME COURT
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Henry C. Lind, UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT
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Thomas B. Merritt, MASSACHUSETTS SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT
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Frederick A. Muller, NEW YORK COURT OF APPEALS
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James H. Norris, Jr., MARYLAND STATE COURT ADMINISTRATOR
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Thomas J. Oliver, UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT
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Mary T. Pittman, UNITED STATES TAX COURT
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Stephen D. Porter, ILLINOIS SUPREME COURT
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Richard D. Ross, KANSAS SUPREME COURT
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George Earl Smith, ALABAMA APPELLATE COURTS
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Ronald A. Tutalo, RHODE ISLAND SUPREME COURT