Nicole L. Waters, a Principal Court Research Consultant, has been with the National Center for State Courts since 2000. Current work at the Center includes research on problem-solving courts, examining the appellate court case processing, and evaluating policy implications of jury procedures. Dr. Waters has taught courses in research and evaluation methods designed for court leaders and judges and serves on the advisory board of NCSC’s educational division, the Institute for Court Management. Dr. Waters is currently conducting an evaluation of the Miami-Dade Adult Drug Court and developing performance measurement targets for Kentucky’s drug courts. She has explored mental health courts both statewide and nationally, including a statewide evaluation and development of statewide standards for mental health courts (MHCs) and development of national performance measures for MHCs. She has gained a broader understanding of problem-solving courts after directing a census of problem-solving courts nationwide and conducting numerous evaluations. Dr. Waters has compiled and analyzed case-level data on civil and criminal appeals representing all state appellate courts across the nation. At the University of Delaware, she received a Ph.D. in sociology with a specialization in law and society and research methodology/statistics.
