Supreme Court Sorta Spiffs Up Web Site

The heavily-trafficked Web site of the U.S. Supreme Court -- long criticized for its confusing navigation and lack of information -- has finally been upgraded, somewhat.

It now offers a case citation finder and an interactive calendar with links to further background on the cases scheduled for argument. In addition, recent court decisions are now accessible from the homepage. New records available include docket files dating back to 2000. The site still does not provide oral argument recordings or direct access to briefs.

The Sunlight Foundation, which designed an ideal makeover last year, says on its blog that the site's revamp is "a small but important step towards increased openness and accessibility, although it needs serious work."

The government transparency group notes several areas where fixes are needed:

• "The Web page needs to provide more information about what the court is doing, explaining legal terms of art, and grouping relevant information together (such as information pertaining to a particular case).

• It should incorporate a user-friendly advanced search engine.

• Use machine-readable formats (not just PDFs)."

In addition to the new look, the site has a new manager, according to staff. Today, the highest court in the land began hosting its own site, taking over maintenance from the Government Printing Office, which had operated the site for a decade. The migration will allow the court to merge the site with its in-house electronic operations, expand public services and more quickly execute site enhancements, since it no longer has to go through a third party. The change in hands was made possible by funding from fiscal 2010 appropriations.