ENROLLED
2023 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 661 (Substitute for House Bill No. 300 by Representative Muscarello)
BY REPRESENTATIVE MUSCARELLO
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact R.S. 13:61 and to enact R.S. 13:37, relative to the judiciary; to
3 provide relative to the Judicial Council of the Supreme Court of Louisiana; to
4 provide for the duties of the council; to provide relative to the review of courts and
5 offices within the judicial branch of state government; to provide relative to data
6 utilized by the council; to provide relative to the Judiciary Commission; to provide
7 for requirements of the commission; and to provide for related matters.
8 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
9 Section 1. R.S. 13:61 is hereby amended and reenacted and R.S. 13:37 is hereby
10 enacted to read as follows:
11 §37. Publication of membership and meetings; requirements
12 Beginning August 1, 2023, the Judiciary Commission shall publish its
13 membership on its public website.
14 * * *
15 §61. Judicial Council
16 A.(1) The Judicial Council of the Supreme Court of Louisiana shall adopt
17 determinate standards and guidelines which shall be applied by the council in
18 determining whether to approve recommend to the legislature the necessity of
19 creating or eliminating any new judgeship of the supreme court, courts of appeal,
20 district courts, city courts, parish courts, juvenile courts, family courts, traffic courts,
21 and municipal courts, including the creation or elimination of any new office of
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1 commissioner, magistrate, hearing officer, or any other judicial office by whatever
2 other name designated.
3 (2) The Judicial Council shall adopt determinate standards and guidelines
4 which shall be applied by the council in determining whether to approve recommend
5 to the legislature the necessity of splitting or merging any courts of appeal, district
6 courts, city courts, parish courts, juvenile courts, family courts, traffic courts, and
7 municipal courts.
8 B.(1) Before a bill is acted upon by the legislature to create or eliminate a
9 new judgeship or office designated in Paragraph (A)(1) of this Section, a designee
10 of the Judicial Council shall provide information to the appropriate standing
11 committees of the House of Representatives or of the Senate as to approval the
12 recommendation of the council as to the necessity of creating or eliminating the new
13 judgeship or office of commissioner, magistrate, or hearing officer.
14 (2) Before a bill is acted upon by the legislature to split or merge courts
15 designated in Paragraph (A)(2) of this Section, a designee of the Judicial Council
16 shall provide information to the appropriate standing committees of the House of
17 Representatives or of the Senate as to approval the recommendation of the council
18 as to the necessity of splitting or merging the courts.
19 C. The legislature shall not be required to act upon or enact legislation or
20 otherwise act upon any recommendation of the council. creating a new judgeship or
21 office of commissioner, magistrate, or hearing officer even though the council has
22 authorized the creation of the new office.
23 D. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to justice of the peace
24 courts, mayors' courts, or administrative law judges employed by the Division of
25 Administrative Law division of administrative law, or clerks of court.
26 E. The Judicial Council shall have the authority to conduct an annual review
27 of judicial districts and appellate circuits and shall provide information and
28 recommendations to the legislature on the appropriate number of district and
29 appellate court judgeships within each district or circuit based upon caseload,
30 population, or other pertinent factors, including the findings and recommendations
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1 of the Judicial Structure Task Force established by House Resolution No. 30 of the
2 2022 Regular Session of the Legislature. The recommendations may include
3 proposed revisions to specific constitutional or statutory language addressing the
4 number of such judges in each district or circuit, the need for district or circuit
5 merger or other actions, and the filling of judicial office vacancies in such district or
6 circuit.
7 F. In order to assist the council in accomplishing the reviews and evaluations
8 provided for in this Section, the supreme court, in consultation with the clerks of
9 court, shall adopt procedural and administrative rules to establish uniform data
10 reporting standards for all case filings and adjudications including requirements for
11 electronic filing and reporting. The clerks of all Louisiana courts shall report all
12 requested data to the council in the manner and form directed by the council.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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