78A-12-204. Judicial performance survey.
| (1) |
A third party under contract to the commission shall conduct, on an ongoing basis during the judge‘s term in office, the judicial performance survey required by Section 78A-12-203 concerning a judge who is subject to a retention election. |
Terms Used In Utah Code 78A-12-204
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Commission: means the Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission established by this chapter. See Utah Code 78A-12-102
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- judge: means a state court judge or a state court justice who is subject to a retention election. See Utah Code 78A-12-102
- Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
- Oral argument: An opportunity for lawyers to summarize their position before the court and also to answer the judges' questions.
- Person: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- Precedent: A court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to a dispute currently before a court. Precedent will ordinarily govern the decision of a later similar case, unless a party can show that it was wrongly decided or that it differed in some significant way.
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
| (2) |
| (a) |
The judicial performance survey shall include as respondents a sample of each of the following groups as applicable:
| (i) |
attorneys who have appeared before the judge as counsel; |
| (ii) |
jurors who have served in a case before the judge; and |
| (iii) |
court staff who have worked with the judge. |
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| (b) |
Only a respondent under Subsection (2)(a)(i) who is admitted to practice law in the state and in good standing with the Utah State Bar may evaluate a judge’s legal ability under Subsection (7)(a). |
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| (3) |
The commission may include an additional classification of respondents if the commission:
| (a) |
considers a survey of that classification of respondents helpful to voters in determining whether to vote to retain a judge; and |
| (b) |
establishes the additional classification of respondents by rule. |
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| (4) |
All survey responses are confidential, including comments included with a survey response. |
| (5) |
If the commission provides information to a judge or the Judicial Council, the commission shall provide the information in such a way as to protect the anonymity of a survey respondent. |
| (6) |
A survey shall be provided to a potential survey respondent within 30 days of the day on which the case in which the person appears in the judge’s court is closed, exclusive of any appeal, except for court staff and attorneys, who may be surveyed at any time during the survey period. |
| (7) |
Survey categories shall include questions concerning a judge’s:
| (a) |
legal ability, including the following:
| (i) |
demonstration of understanding of the substantive law and any relevant rules of procedure and evidence; |
| (ii) |
attentiveness to factual and legal issues before the court; |
| (iii) |
adherence to precedent and ability to clearly explain departures from precedent; |
| (iv) |
grasp of the practical impact on the parties of the judge’s rulings, including the effect of delay and increased litigation expense; |
| (v) |
ability to write clear judicial opinions; and |
| (vi) |
ability to clearly explain the legal basis for judicial opinions; |
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| (b) |
judicial temperament and integrity, including the following:
| (i) |
demonstration of courtesy toward attorneys, court staff, and others in the judge’s court; |
| (ii) |
maintenance of decorum in the courtroom; |
| (iii) |
demonstration of judicial demeanor and personal attributes that promote public trust and confidence in the judicial system; |
| (iv) |
preparedness for oral argument; |
| (v) |
avoidance of impropriety or the appearance of impropriety; |
| (vi) |
display of fairness and impartiality toward all parties; and |
| (vii) |
ability to clearly communicate, including the ability to explain the basis for written rulings, court procedures, and decisions; and |
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| (c) |
administrative performance, including the following:
| (i) |
management of workload; |
| (ii) |
sharing proportionally the workload within the court or district; and |
| (iii) |
issuance of opinions and orders without unnecessary delay. |
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| (8) |
If the commission determines that a certain survey question or category of questions is not appropriate for a respondent group, the commission may omit that question or category of questions from the survey provided to that respondent group. |
| (9) |
| (a) |
The survey shall allow respondents to indicate responses in a manner determined by the commission, which shall be:
| (i) |
on a numerical scale from one to five; or |
| (ii) |
in the affirmative or negative, with an option to indicate the respondent’s inability to respond in the affirmative or negative. |
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| (b) |
| (i) |
To supplement the responses to questions on either a numerical scale or in the affirmative or negative, the commission may allow respondents to provide written comments. |
| (ii) |
The executive director may not provide the commission a comment that would be prohibited in relation to taking an employment action under federal or state law. |
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| (10) |
The commission shall compile and make available to each judge that judge’s survey results with each of the judge’s judicial performance evaluations. |
Amended by Chapter 81, 2017 General Session
Amended by Chapter 374, 2017 General Session
