Chief Justice Harold Melton, Supreme Court of Georgia (Photo: John Disney/ALM)

The annual “Eliminating Barriers to Justice” conference at Georgia State University College of Law—offering continuing legal education training for lawyers, judges and administrators on providing courtroom access to defendants, victims and litigants with disabilities—is to feature a keynote speech from Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Harold Melton.

The event is scheduled for Oct. 31 from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Last year's conference focused on legal aid options in the rural Georgia counties that have few or no lawyers, as well as providing qualified language interpreters for all court proceedings.

“The inaugural session in 2014 fortunately was well received and EBJ has developed into an annual conference with support from national and state entities,” said one of the event organizers, Jana Edmondson-Cooper, of the Supreme Court of Georgia Commission on Interpreters. “We are excited to celebrate year five this year as we are focusing on access to justice for persons with disabilities, including limited English proficient persons who may also have a disability.”

Edmondson-Cooper co-created the series with Lisa Krisher, director of litigation at Georgia Legal Services Program, and A. Bernadette Olmos, managing partner at A.B. Olmos & Associates.

The event is divided into three sections, starting at 9:15 a.m. It will be held at the GSU law school, 85 Park Place, N.E., in downtown Atlanta. Melton's speech is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. The first session will address considerations to ensure effective representation for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. The discussion will include victim services for survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

Speakers for the first session include:

• Nancy Smith, director, Vera Institute of Justice Center for Victimization Safety;
• William D. Goren, Americans with Disabilities Act consultant;
• Paul Panusky, nationally certified interpreter; and
• Michael Eshman, managing partner, The Eshman Law Firm.

The second session will focus on technology. Speakers include:

• Tabitha Ponder, staff attorney, Judicial Council of Georgia Access to Justice Committee;
• William Simmons, administrator, Sixth Judicial District;
• David Hoover, federally certified interpreter, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia; and
• Rob Cruz, executive director, National Association of Judicial Interpreters and Translators.

The featured speaker for the third session is Karlise Grier, executive director of the Supreme Court of Georgia Chief Justice's Commission on Professionalism.

The event is free and open to the public. Registration is requested.