Rule 3-201. Court commissioners.
Intent:
To define the role of
court commissioner.
To establish a term of
office for court commissioners.
To establish uniform
administrative policies governing the qualifications, appointment, supervision,
discipline and removal of court commissioners.
To establish uniform
administrative policies governing the salaries, benefits and privileges of the
office of court commissioner.
Applicability:
This rule shall apply to
all trial courts of record.
Statement of the Rule:
(1) Definition. Court
commissioners are quasi-judicial officers established by the Utah Code.
(2) Qualifications.
(A) Court commissioners
must be at least 25 years of age, United States citizens, Utah residents for
three years preceding appointment and residents of Utah while serving as
commissioners. A court commissioner shall reside in a judicial district the
commissioner serves.
(B) Court commissioners
must be admitted to practice law in Utah and exhibit good character. Court
commissioners must possess ability and experience in the areas of law in which
the court commissioner serves.
(C) Court commissioners
shall serve full time and shall comply with Utah Code Section 78A-2-221.
(3) Appointment - Oath
of office.
(A) Selection of court
commissioners shall be based solely upon consideration of fitness for office.
(B) When a vacancy
occurs or is about to occur in the office of a court commissioner, the Council
shall determine whether to fill the vacancy. The Council may determine that the
court commissioner will serve more than one judicial district.
(C) A committee for the
purpose of nominating candidates for the position of court commissioner shall
consist of one judge from each court that the commissioner will serve, three lawyers, and two members of the public.
Committee members shall be appointed by the presiding judge of the district
court of each judicial district. The committee members shall serve three year
terms, staggered so that not more than one term of a member of the bench, bar,
or public expires during the same calendar year. The presiding judge shall
designate a chair of the committee. All members of the committee shall reside
in the judicial district. All members of the committee shall be voting members.
A quorum of one-half the committee members is necessary for the committee to
act. The committee shall act by the concurrence of a majority of the members
voting. When voting upon the qualifications of a candidate, the committee shall
follow the voting procedures of the judicial nominating commissions.
(D) If the commissioner
will serve more than one judicial district, the presiding judges of the
districts involved shall select representatives from each district's nominating
committee to form a joint nominating committee with a size and composition
equivalent to that of a district committee.
(E) No member of the
committee may vote upon the qualifications of any candidate who is the spouse
of that committee member or is related to that committee member within the
third degree of relationship. No member of the committee may vote upon the
qualifications of a candidate who is associated with that committee member in
the practice of law. The committee member shall declare to the committee any
other potential conflict of interest between that member and any candidate as
soon as the member becomes aware of the potential conflict of interest. The
committee shall determine whether the potential conflict of interest will
preclude the member from voting upon the qualifications of any candidate. The
committee shall record all declarations of potential conflicts of interest and
the decision of the committee upon the issue.
(F) The administrative
office of the courts shall advertise for qualified applicants and shall remove
from consideration those applicants who do not meet minimum qualifications of
age, citizenship, residency, and admission to the practice of law. The
administrative office of the courts shall develop uniform guidelines for the application
process for court commissioners.
(G) The nominating
committee shall review the applications of qualified applicants and may
investigate the qualifications of applicants to its satisfaction. The committee
shall interview selected applicants and select the three best qualified
candidates. The committee shall receive public comment on those candidates as provided
in paragraph (4).
(H) When the public
comment period has closed, the comments shall go to the nominating committee.
If any comments would negatively affect the committee’s decision on whether to
recommend a candidate, the candidate shall be given notice and an opportunity
to respond to the comments. If the committee decides not to recommend a
candidate based on the comments, the committee shall select another candidate
from the interviewed applicants and again receive public comment on the
candidates as provided in paragraph (4).
(I) The
chair of the nominating committee shall present the names, applications, and
the results of background investigations of the nominees to the judges of the
courts the court commissioner will serve. The committee may indicate its order
of preference.
(J) The judges of the
courts the court commissioner will serve shall select one of the nominees by a
concurrence of a majority of judges voting. The concurrence of each court
independent of the others is necessary for selection.
(K) The presiding judge of the district court
of the district the court commissioner will primarily serve shall present the
name of the selected candidate to the Council. The selection shall be final
upon the concurrence of two-thirds of the members of the Council. The Council
shall vote upon the selection within 45 days of the selection or the
concurrence of the Council shall be deemed granted.
(L) If the Council does
not concur in the selection, the judges of the district may select another of
the nominees or a new nominating process will be commenced.
(M) The appointment
shall be effective upon the court commissioner taking and subscribing to the
oath of office required by the Utah Constitution and taking any other steps
necessary to qualify for office. The court commissioner shall qualify for
office within 45 days after the concurrence by the Council.
(4) Public comment for
appointment and retention.
(A) Final candidates for
appointment and court commissioners who are up for retention shall be subject
to public comment.
(B) For final
candidates, the nominating committee shall be responsible for giving notice of
the public comment period.
(C) For court
commissioners, the district in which the commissioner serves shall be
responsible for giving notice of the public comment period.
(D) The nominating
committee or district in which the commissioner serves shall:
(i) email
notice to each active member of the Utah State Bar including the names of the
nominees or court commissioner with instructions on how to submit comments;
(ii) publish
the names of the nominees or court commissioner with instructions on how to
submit comments in a newspaper of general circulation; and
(iii) allow
at least 10 days for public comment.
(E) Individuals who
comment on the nominees or commissioners should be encouraged, but not required,
to provide their names and contact information.
(F) The comments are
classified as protected court records and shall not be made available to the
public.
(5) Term of office. The
court commissioner shall be appointed until December 31 of the third year
following concurrence by the Council. At the conclusion of the first term of
office and each subsequent term, the court commissioner shall be retained for a
term of four years unless the judges of the courts the commissioner serves
remove the commissioner in accordance with paragraph (6)(C). The term of office
of court commissioners holding office on April 1, 2011 shall end December 31 of
the year in which their term would have ended under the former rule.
(6) Performance evaluation
and public comments.
(A) The presiding judge
of the district shall prepare an evaluation of the commissioner's performance
on an annual basis, on forms provided by the administrative office. The
presiding judge shall provide copies of the evaluation to the Judicial Council.
A copy of the performance plan and any subsequent evaluation shall be
maintained in the official personnel file in the administrative office. Court
commissioners shall comply with the program for judicial performance evaluation,
including any recommendations made in the evaluation.
(B) When the public
comment period has closed, the comments shall go to the presiding judge in the
district in which the commissioner serves. If any comments would negatively
affect the presiding judge’s decision on whether to discipline or remove the
commissioner from office, the commissioner shall be given notice and an
opportunity to respond to the comments.
(7) Removal and
sanctions.
(A) If the
commissioner's performance is not satisfactory, the presiding judge, with the
concurrence of the judges of that jurisdiction, may discipline the commissioner
or remove the commissioner from office. If the commissioner disagrees with the
presiding judge's decision, the commissioner may request a review of the
decision by the Management Committee of the Council.
(B) The court
commissioner may be removed by the Council:
(i) as
part of a reduction in force;
(ii) for
failure to meet the evaluation and certification requirements; or
(iii) as
the result of a formal complaint filed under CJA Rule 3-201.02 upon the
concurrence of two-thirds of the Council.
(C) The court
commissioner may be removed without cause by the judges of the courts the
commissioner serves at the conclusion of a term of office. Removal under this
paragraph shall be by the concurrence of a majority of all judges of the courts
the commissioner serves. A decision to remove a commissioner under this
paragraph shall be communicated to the commissioner within a reasonable time
after the decision is made, and not less than 30 days prior to termination.
(D) The court
commissioner may be sanctioned by the Council as the result of a formal
complaint or by the presiding judge or judges of the courts the commissioner
serves. Sanctions may include but are not limited to private or public censure,
restrictions in case assignments, mandatory remedial education, suspension for
a period not to exceed 60 days, and reduction in salary.
(8) Salaries and
benefits.
(A) The Council shall
annually establish the salary of court commissioners. In determining the salary
of the court commissioners, the Council shall consider the effect of any salary
increase for judges authorized by the Legislature and other relevant factors.
Except as provided in paragraph (6), the salary of a commissioner shall not be
reduced during the commissioner's tenure.
(B) Court commissioners
shall receive annual leave of 20 days per calendar year and the same sick leave
benefits as judges of the courts of record. Annual leave not used at the end of
the calendar year shall not accrue to the following year. A commissioner hired
part way through the year shall receive annual leave on a prorated basis. Court
commissioners shall receive the same retirement benefits as non-judicial
officers employed in the judicial branch.
(9) Support services.
(A) Court commissioners
shall be provided with support personnel, equipment, and supplies necessary to
carry out the duties of the office as determined by the presiding judge.
(B) Court commissioners
are responsible for requesting necessary support services from the presiding
judge.