The  National Center for State Courts (NCSC), a non-profit organization, was founded more than 30 years ago to promote organizational and technical innovations in judicial systems throughout all states in the United States of America and the world.  The NCSC is governed by a board of judges, court administrators, and private-sector business people, and serves as the secretariat to almost all professional organizations serving U.S. court systems.

Viewed as the leader in court administration, the NCSC advances legal and justice system reforms worldwide by building upon the best research, practices and court models that emerge from the U.S. state court system.  In 1992, at USAID's behest, NCSC International was formally established.  A dedicated team of international development professionals mobilize the organization's vast resources to provide a full range of technical assistance services around the world.

NCSC International initially focused its services exclusively on judicial and court administration.  It continues to draw on the experiences of all types of U.S. courts (trial and appellate level, general and special jurisdictions courts, such as family violence, drugs, or problem-solving courts) and judicial systems that operate in places as diverse as Indian reservations, rural counties and large metropolitan areas, such as New York City.  Recognizing that the U.S. court system may not always serve as the most appropriate example, NCSC, International has teamed up with international experts and organizations from other countries and added successful international models to the pool of knowledge that it shares in countries around the world.

Early on, NCSC International recognized that effective court administration is just one component of a well functioning justice system.  NCSC International was among the first providers of holistic justice sector assistance to expand its in-house capabilities in areas such as anti-corruption, public defense, prosecutorial procedures, security assistance and human rights.

NCSC International has successfully implemented programs in more than 30 countries; engaging in comprehensive projects in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin America; in civil and common-law systems; as well as in systems based on Shari'a and those dominated by traditional justice.  NCSC International includes staff from nine different countries and in-house linguistic abilities include Chinese, French, German, Mongolian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish and Vietnamese.

NCSC International receives funding from USAID, The World Bank, The Asian Development Bank, the British Department for International Development (DFID), the UNDP, as well as individual governments.  NCSC International is the only Rule of Law (ROL) organization to be awarded three consecutive Indefinite Quantity Contracts, (IQC) by USAID and it is the only NGO among the current IQC holders.  NCSC International has gained a solid reputation for its leadership, responsiveness, flexibility, and effective operations.