Because individuals and families involved in juvenile court cases frequently have mental health needs, clinical information can play a significant role in legal decision-making. The article focuses on the response of the Juvenile Justice Department of the Circuit Court of Cook County, IL, to problems associated with acquiring and using clinical information. A multidisciplinary team, the Clinical Evaluation and Services Initiative (CESI), conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the clinical information system in the juvenile court. The team recommended changes to the process of acquiring clinical information, to the content and quality of information acquired, and to system-wide constraints. The paper contains a brief overview of the Cook County juvenile court system, and of CESI's evaluation methods and findings; describes a model for reform of the clinical information system and how the model responds to specific problems; and discusses applicability to other jurisdictions of CESI's system evaluation methods, findings, and proposed model. Notes