Results revealed that the social trend most likely to affect the courts significantly is drug law offenses. Other influential trends include children in poverty, the increase in elderly persons, poverty cycles, and weakening family structure. Economic and international trends were generally thought to have the least impact. However, the experts disagreed regarding 30 of the 59 trends presented. The experts agreed that the court-related trend most likely to have a significant future impact is the growth in court caseloads. Other important trends are jail and prison overcrowding, the unavailability of drug treatment programs, the emergency of mandated alternative dispute resolution programs, and unrealistic appropriations for the judicial branch of government. The experts recommended several actions, including the creation of a oversight role for the courts with respect to client satisfaction, establishment of a multicultural court, the promotion of legal services, and the establishment of a court of limited jurisdiction to resolve tort disputes involving scientific issues related to toxic substances. Other recommendations, figures, tables, and endnote