41 | 42 | | |
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42 | 43 | | An Act relating to courts; defining terms; creating |
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43 | 44 | | the Office of Judicial Performance Evaluat ion; |
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44 | 45 | | providing purpose of Office; creating Board of |
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45 | 46 | | Judicial Performance Evaluation; stating purpose of |
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46 | 47 | | Board; providing for terms of office for members of |
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47 | 48 | | the Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation; |
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48 | 49 | | imposing certain conditions with respect to |
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49 | 50 | | membership; providing for payment to members of the |
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50 | 51 | | Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation; providing |
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51 | 52 | | for travel reimbursement; requiring approval for |
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52 | 53 | | expenses of the Office of Judicial Performance |
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53 | 54 | | Evaluation; providing certain meetings of the Board |
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54 | 55 | | of Judicial Performance Evaluation confidential and |
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55 | 56 | | exempt from Oklahoma Open Meeting Act; providing for |
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56 | 57 | | confidentiality of certain information and exempt ion |
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57 | 58 | | from Oklahoma Open Records Act; creating |
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58 | 59 | | Administrator position; prescribing duties of |
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59 | 60 | | Administrator; prescribin g duties and powers of |
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60 | 61 | | Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation; |
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61 | 62 | | prescribing criteria for judicial performance |
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62 | 63 | | evaluations; requiring initial evaluations; requiring |
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63 | 64 | | interim evaluations; allowing response from Justice |
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64 | 65 | | or judge; requiring performance evalua tions be shared |
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65 | 66 | | with certain persons; requ iring election-year |
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66 | 67 | | evaluations; prescribing content of narratives; |
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67 | 68 | | allowing response from Justice or judge; requiring |
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68 | 69 | | performance evaluations be shared with certain |
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69 | 70 | | persons; authorizing improvement plans; prescrib ing |
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70 | 71 | | process; prescribing procedures based upon failure to |
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71 | 72 | | complete plan; providing for disclosure of certain |
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72 | 73 | | conflicts of interest; providing recusal process for |
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73 | 74 | | certain persons; requiring information be kept |
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74 | 75 | | confidential; prescribing Board of Judicial |
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101 | 103 | | Performance Evaluation duties and powers; aut horizing |
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102 | 104 | | promulgation of rules; prov iding for codification; |
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103 | 105 | | and providing an effective date . |
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106 | 108 | | |
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107 | 109 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: |
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108 | 110 | | SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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109 | 111 | | in the Oklahoma Statu tes as Section 1671 of Title 20, unless there |
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110 | 112 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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111 | 113 | | As used in this act: |
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112 | 114 | | 1. "Attorney" means a person admitted to practice law before |
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113 | 115 | | the courts of this state; |
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114 | 116 | | 2. "Election-year evaluation" means a judicial performance |
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115 | 117 | | evaluation conducted by the Office of Judicial Performance |
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116 | 118 | | Evaluation pursuant to Se ction 6 of this act of a Justice or judge |
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117 | 119 | | whose term is to expire and who must stand for reelection or |
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118 | 120 | | retention election; |
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119 | 121 | | 3. "Improvement plan" means an individual judicial improvement |
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120 | 122 | | plan developed and implemented pursuant to Section 7 of this act; |
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121 | 123 | | 4. "Initial evaluation" and "interim evaluation" mean |
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122 | 124 | | evaluations conducted by the Office of Judicial Performance |
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123 | 125 | | Evaluation pursuant to Section 5 of this act of a Justice or judge; |
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124 | 126 | | 5. "Judge" means all active district judges, associate district |
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125 | 127 | | judges, special judges, Judges of the Oklahoma Court of Criminal |
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126 | 128 | | Appeals, and Judges of the Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals; and |
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127 | 129 | | 6. "Justice" means a Justice of the O klahoma Supreme Court. |
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153 | 156 | | |
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154 | 157 | | SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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155 | 158 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1672 of Title 20, unless there |
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156 | 159 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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157 | 160 | | A. There is hereby created wi thin the Council on Judicial |
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158 | 161 | | Complaints the Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation and the |
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159 | 162 | | Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation. The purpose of the Office |
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160 | 163 | | and the Board shall be to: |
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161 | 164 | | 1. Provide Justices and judges with useful information |
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162 | 165 | | concerning their own performances; and |
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163 | 166 | | 2. Conduct statewide judicial performance evaluations using |
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164 | 167 | | uniform criteria and procedures pursuant to the provisions of this |
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165 | 168 | | act. |
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166 | 169 | | B. 1. The Office of Judicial Performance Evaluati on shall |
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167 | 170 | | present completed performance eval uations and recommendations to the |
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168 | 171 | | Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation , which shall consist of |
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169 | 172 | | nine (9) members, only five of whom shall be members of the Bar of |
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170 | 173 | | the State of Oklahoma and only five of whom sh all constitute a |
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171 | 174 | | quorum. Three members shal l be appointed by the Speaker of the |
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172 | 175 | | Oklahoma House of Representatives; three members shall be appointed |
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173 | 176 | | by the President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate; and three |
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174 | 177 | | members shall be appointed by the Gover nor. No more than five |
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175 | 178 | | members of the Board shall be, or shall have been in the previous |
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176 | 179 | | six (6) months, members of the same political party. Appointments |
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177 | 180 | | may include retired judicial officers, but shall not include members |
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204 | 208 | | of the Council on Judicial Com plaints or Judicial Nominating |
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205 | 209 | | Commission. |
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206 | 210 | | 2. Of the members first appointed to the Board of Judicial |
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207 | 211 | | Performance Evaluation, three shall serve for three (3) years and |
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208 | 212 | | until a successor is appointed and qualified; three shall serve for |
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209 | 213 | | four (4) years and until a successor is appointed and qualifie d; and |
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210 | 214 | | three shall serve for five (5) years and until a successor is |
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211 | 215 | | appointed and qualified. The respective terms of the first members |
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212 | 216 | | shall be determined by lot at the first meeting of the Board, and |
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213 | 217 | | the results thereof shall be certified to the Secreta ry of State and |
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214 | 218 | | to the appointing aut hority for each individual member. Thereafter, |
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215 | 219 | | each appointee shall serve for a term of five (5) years and until a |
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216 | 220 | | successor is appointed and qualified. No person shall be el igible |
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217 | 221 | | to serve more than two terms on the Board. |
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218 | 222 | | 3. The members of the Boar d of Judicial Performance Evaluation |
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219 | 223 | | shall receive for their services the sum of One Hundred Dollars |
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220 | 224 | | ($100.00) for each day, or fraction thereof, of attendance at its |
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221 | 225 | | meetings or other official business of the Board, and r eimbursement |
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222 | 226 | | for travel expenses p ursuant to the State Travel Reimbursement Act. |
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223 | 227 | | C. All expenses of the Office of Judicial Performance |
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224 | 228 | | Evaluation shall be approved by the Chair of the Council on Judicial |
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225 | 229 | | Complaints, by the Council on Judicial Complaints u pon a majority |
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226 | 230 | | vote of its members, or by the Administrative Director to the |
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252 | 257 | | |
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253 | 258 | | Council on Judicial Complaints as directed by the Chair of th e |
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254 | 259 | | Council on Judicial Complaints. |
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255 | 260 | | D. Meetings of the Board of Judicial Per formance Evaluation |
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256 | 261 | | convened for the purpos e of conducting, discussing, or de liberating |
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257 | 262 | | any matter relating to performance evaluations or improvement plans |
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258 | 263 | | are confidential and are n ot subject to the Oklahoma Open Meeting |
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259 | 264 | | Act. |
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260 | 265 | | E. Records of the Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation |
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261 | 266 | | created for the purpose of or in furtherance of summarizing, |
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262 | 267 | | drafting, conducting, discussing, or deliberating any matter |
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263 | 268 | | relating to an election -year evaluation, improvement plan, or |
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264 | 269 | | interim evaluation are confidential and are not subject to |
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265 | 270 | | disclosure under the Okl ahoma Open Records Act. |
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266 | 271 | | F. There is hereby created the position of Administrator to the |
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267 | 272 | | Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation who shall be a state |
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268 | 273 | | employee hired by the Administrative Director to the Council on |
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269 | 274 | | Judicial Complaints. The Administrator, operations, and staffing of |
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270 | 275 | | the Office shall be overseen by the Administrative Director to the |
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271 | 276 | | Council on Judicial Complaints. |
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272 | 277 | | G. The Administrator shall notify the members of the Board of |
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273 | 278 | | Judicial Performance E valuation of the number of completed |
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274 | 279 | | performance evaluations ready for review and consideration by the |
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275 | 280 | | Board five (5) days before the Board 's regular meeting. The |
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276 | 281 | | Administrator shall att end meetings of the Board concerning |
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302 | 308 | | |
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303 | 309 | | performance evaluations and busi ness of the Office, keep records |
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304 | 310 | | concerning performance evaluations, prepare reports required by |
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305 | 311 | | statute, and perform other tasks as the Council shall direct. |
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306 | 312 | | SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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307 | 313 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1673 of Title 20, unless there |
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308 | 314 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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309 | 315 | | A. The Office of Judicial Perfo rmance Evaluation shall: |
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310 | 316 | | 1. Train members of the Board of Judicial Performance |
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311 | 317 | | Evaluation as needed and requested to fulfil the duties established |
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312 | 318 | | pursuant to Section 10 of this act; |
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313 | 319 | | 2. Collect and disseminate data on judicial performance |
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314 | 320 | | evaluations, including judicial performance surveys developed, |
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315 | 321 | | collected, and distributed pursuant to paragraph 5 of subsection B |
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316 | 322 | | of this section; and |
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317 | 323 | | 3. Perform other tasks a s the Board of Judicial Performanc e |
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318 | 324 | | Evaluation or the Council on Judicial Complaints shall direct. |
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319 | 325 | | B. The Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation shall have the |
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320 | 326 | | following powers and duties: |
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321 | 327 | | 1. Review any available case management data and statistics |
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322 | 328 | | related to individual Justices and j udges; |
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323 | 329 | | 2. Review written judicial opinions and orders authorized b y |
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324 | 330 | | Justices and judges; |
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325 | 331 | | 3. Interview Justices and judges under the Board of Judicial |
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326 | 332 | | Performance Evaluation 's oversight; |
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352 | 359 | | |
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353 | 360 | | 4. Accept information and documen tation from interested persons |
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354 | 361 | | as necessary; |
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355 | 362 | | 5. Develop surveys to evaluate the performance of Justices and |
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356 | 363 | | judges which, shall be completed by attorneys, jurors, represented |
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357 | 364 | | and unrepresented litigants, law enfo rcement personnel, attorneys |
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358 | 365 | | within the district attorneys' and public defenders' offices, |
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359 | 366 | | employees of the court, c ourt interpreters, employees of probation |
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360 | 367 | | offices, and employees of local departments of social services; |
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361 | 368 | | 6. Determine the validity of comp leted surveys developed |
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362 | 369 | | pursuant to paragraph 5 of this subsection, report to the Council on |
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363 | 370 | | the validity of the surv eys, and prepare alternatives to surveys |
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364 | 371 | | where sample populations are inadequate to produce valid results; |
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365 | 372 | | 7. Prepare narratives for the B oard of Judicial Performance |
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366 | 373 | | Evaluation that reflect the performance of Justices and judges; |
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367 | 374 | | 8. Submit any information concerning or appearing to concern a |
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368 | 375 | | complaint or violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct, or other |
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369 | 376 | | law, by a judicial officer to the Administrative Director to the |
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370 | 377 | | Council on Judicial Complaints; |
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371 | 378 | | 9. Submit performance evaluations of Justices and judges to the |
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372 | 379 | | Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation for approval or rejection; |
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373 | 380 | | and |
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374 | 381 | | 10. Recommend, at the Office 's discretion after it comp letes an |
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375 | 382 | | evaluation of a Justice or judge p ursuant to Section 5 of this act, |
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376 | 383 | | to the Board of Judicial Performance Evaluat ion that it develop an |
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402 | 410 | | |
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403 | 411 | | individual judicial improvement plan pursuant to Section 7 of this |
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404 | 412 | | act. |
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405 | 413 | | SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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406 | 414 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1674 of Title 20, unless there |
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407 | 415 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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408 | 416 | | The Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation shall evaluate |
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409 | 417 | | each Justice and judge in Oklaho ma utilizing the powers and duties |
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410 | 418 | | conferred in Section 3 of this act. The evaluations shall only |
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411 | 419 | | include the following p erformance evaluation criteria: |
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412 | 420 | | 1. Integrity including, but not limited to, whether the Justice |
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413 | 421 | | or judge: |
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414 | 422 | | a. avoids impropriety or th e appearance of impropriety, |
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415 | 423 | | b. displays fairness and impartiality toward all |
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416 | 424 | | participants, and |
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417 | 425 | | c. avoids ex parte communic ations; |
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418 | 426 | | 2. Legal knowledge including, but not limited to, whether the |
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419 | 427 | | Justice or judge: |
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420 | 428 | | a. demonstrates, through well -reasoned opinions and |
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421 | 429 | | courtroom conduct, an understanding of substantive law |
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422 | 430 | | and relevant rules of procedure and evidence, |
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423 | 431 | | b. demonstrates, through well-reasoned opinions and |
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424 | 432 | | courtroom conduct, attentiveness to factual and legal |
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425 | 433 | | issues before the court, and |
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451 | 460 | | |
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452 | 461 | | c. adheres to precedent or clearly explains the legal |
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453 | 462 | | basis for departure from precedent a nd appropriately |
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454 | 463 | | applies statutes or other sou rces of legal authority; |
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455 | 464 | | 3. Communication skills includi ng, but not limited to, whether |
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456 | 465 | | the Justice or judge: |
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457 | 466 | | a. presents clearly written and understandable opinions, |
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458 | 467 | | findings of fact, conclusions of law, and orders, |
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459 | 468 | | b. presents clearly stated and understa ndable questions |
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460 | 469 | | or statements during oral arguments or presentations, |
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461 | 470 | | and, for trial judges, clearly explains all oral |
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462 | 471 | | decisions, and |
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463 | 472 | | c. clearly presents information to the jury, as |
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464 | 473 | | necessary; |
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465 | 474 | | 4. Judicial temperament including, but not limited to, whether |
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466 | 475 | | the Justice or judge: |
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467 | 476 | | a. demonstrates courtesy toward a ttorneys, litigants, |
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468 | 477 | | court staff, and others in the courtroom, and |
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469 | 478 | | b. maintains and requires order, punctuality, and |
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470 | 479 | | appropriate decorum in the courtro om; |
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471 | 480 | | 5. Administrative performance including, but not limited to, |
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472 | 481 | | whether the Justice or judge: |
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473 | 482 | | a. demonstrates preparation for oral arguments, trials, |
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474 | 483 | | and hearings, as well as a ttentiveness to and |
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475 | 484 | | appropriate control ove r judicial proceedings , |
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501 | 511 | | |
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502 | 512 | | b. manages workload and court time effectively and |
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503 | 513 | | efficiently, |
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504 | 514 | | c. issues opinions, findings of fact, conclusions of law, |
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505 | 515 | | and orders in a timely manner and without unnecessary |
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506 | 516 | | delay, |
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507 | 517 | | d. participates in a proportionate share of the c ourt's |
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508 | 518 | | workload, takes responsibilit y for more than his or |
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509 | 519 | | her own caseload, and is wi lling to assist other |
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510 | 520 | | Justices or judges, and |
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511 | 521 | | e. understands and complies, as necessary, with |
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512 | 522 | | directives of the Oklahoma Suprem e Court, Oklahoma |
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513 | 523 | | Court of Criminal Appeals , Oklahoma Court of Civil |
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514 | 524 | | Appeals, the presiding judge of his or her |
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515 | 525 | | administrative district, or the chief judge of the |
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516 | 526 | | judicial district, as applicable; and |
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517 | 527 | | 6. Service to the legal profession and the public by |
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518 | 528 | | participating in service -oriented efforts designed to educate the |
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519 | 529 | | public about the legal system and improve the legal system. |
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520 | 530 | | SECTION 5. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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521 | 531 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1675 of Title 20, unless there |
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522 | 532 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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523 | 533 | | A. Within the first two (2) years of a Justice 's or judge's |
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524 | 534 | | first appointment or election to the bench, the Office of Judicial |
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525 | 535 | | Performance Evaluation shall conduct an initial evaluati on of each |
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541 | 552 | | 15 |
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542 | 553 | | 16 |
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543 | 554 | | 17 |
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544 | 555 | | 18 |
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546 | 557 | | 20 |
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548 | 559 | | 22 |
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549 | 560 | | 23 |
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550 | 561 | | 24 |
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551 | 562 | | |
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552 | 563 | | Justice and judge. The Office shall complete and communicate the |
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553 | 564 | | initial evaluations, including any recommendations for improvement |
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554 | 565 | | plans, to the Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation for a pproval |
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555 | 566 | | or rejection. Once approved, the Office sha ll communicate the |
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556 | 567 | | initial evaluation to th e Justice or judge in writing. |
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557 | 568 | | B. Within two (2) years of the approval of the initial |
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558 | 569 | | evaluation of a Justice or judge by the Board or within two (2) |
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559 | 570 | | years of the effective date of this act, the Office shall cond uct an |
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560 | 571 | | interim evaluation of each Justice a nd judge. The Office shall |
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561 | 572 | | complete and communicate the interim evaluations, including any |
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562 | 573 | | recommendations for improvement plans, to the Board of Judicial |
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563 | 574 | | Performance Evaluation for approval or rejection. Once approved, |
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564 | 575 | | the Office shall communicate the i nterim evaluation to the Justice |
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565 | 576 | | or judge in writing. |
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566 | 577 | | C. For judges not required to stand for reelection or retention |
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567 | 578 | | election, the Office shall conduct additional i nterim evaluations of |
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568 | 579 | | such judges within two (2 ) years following a general election. The |
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569 | 580 | | Office shall complete and communicat e the interim evaluations, |
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570 | 581 | | including any recommendations fo r improvement plans, to the Board of |
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571 | 582 | | Judicial Performance Evaluation for approval or rejection. Once |
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572 | 583 | | approved, the Office shall communicate the interim evaluati on to the |
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573 | 584 | | judge in writing. |
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574 | 585 | | D. The Board shall grant each Justice or judge who receives |
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575 | 586 | | initial and interim evaluations the opportunity to meet with the |
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576 | 587 | | |
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578 | 590 | | 2 |
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579 | 591 | | 3 |
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580 | 592 | | 4 |
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581 | 593 | | 5 |
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592 | 604 | | 16 |
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594 | 606 | | 18 |
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596 | 608 | | 20 |
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597 | 609 | | 21 |
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598 | 610 | | 22 |
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599 | 611 | | 23 |
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600 | 612 | | 24 |
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601 | 613 | | |
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602 | 614 | | Board at its next meeting or otherwise respond to the initi al or |
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603 | 615 | | interim evaluation no later than ten (10) days following the |
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604 | 616 | | Justice's or judge's receipt of the initial or inter im evaluation. |
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605 | 617 | | If a meeting is held or a response is made, the Board may revise the |
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606 | 618 | | initial or interim evaluation as it sees fit. |
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607 | 619 | | E. Once the initial or interim performance evalu ations are |
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608 | 620 | | finalized, the Office sh all share the performance evaluations as |
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609 | 621 | | follows: |
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610 | 622 | | 1. For special judges, with the Chief Justice of the Supreme |
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611 | 623 | | Court, the Presiding Administrative Judge of the judicial district |
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612 | 624 | | in which the special judge serves and any judge by administrative |
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613 | 625 | | orders in the role of a direct supervisor of the specia l judge of |
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614 | 626 | | the judicial district in which the special judge serves, and the |
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615 | 627 | | Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts; and |
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616 | 628 | | 2. For district and associate judges, with the Chief Justice of |
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617 | 629 | | the Supreme Court and the Administrative Director of the |
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618 | 630 | | Administrative Office of the Courts. |
---|
619 | 631 | | SECTION 6. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
---|
620 | 632 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1676 of Title 20, unless there |
---|
621 | 633 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
---|
622 | 634 | | A. The Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation shal l conduct |
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623 | 635 | | an election-year evaluation for each Justice or judge whose term is |
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624 | 636 | | to expire and who must stand for reelection or retention elect ion. |
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625 | 637 | | |
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627 | 640 | | 2 |
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628 | 641 | | 3 |
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629 | 642 | | 4 |
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630 | 643 | | 5 |
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631 | 644 | | 6 |
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632 | 645 | | 7 |
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633 | 646 | | 8 |
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634 | 647 | | 9 |
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635 | 648 | | 10 |
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636 | 649 | | 11 |
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637 | 650 | | 12 |
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638 | 651 | | 13 |
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639 | 652 | | 14 |
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640 | 653 | | 15 |
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641 | 654 | | 16 |
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642 | 655 | | 17 |
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643 | 656 | | 18 |
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644 | 657 | | 19 |
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645 | 658 | | 20 |
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646 | 659 | | 21 |
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647 | 660 | | 22 |
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648 | 661 | | 23 |
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649 | 662 | | 24 |
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650 | 663 | | |
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651 | 664 | | B. 1. The Office shall complete an election -year evaluation |
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652 | 665 | | and related narrative to be approved by the Board o f Judicial |
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653 | 666 | | Performance Evaluation. Once approved, the election -year evaluation |
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654 | 667 | | shall be communicated in writing to the Justice or judge n o later |
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655 | 668 | | than forty-five (45) days prior to the las t day available for the |
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656 | 669 | | Justice or judge to declare his or her intent to stand for |
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657 | 670 | | reelection or retention election. |
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658 | 671 | | 2. The narrative prepared for an election -year evaluation must |
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659 | 672 | | include an assessment of the Justice's or judge's strengths and |
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660 | 673 | | weaknesses with respect to the judicial performance criteria |
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661 | 674 | | provided for in Sect ion 4 of this act, a discussion regarding any |
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662 | 675 | | deficiency identified in an initial or inte rim evaluation prepared |
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663 | 676 | | pursuant to Section 5 o f this act, a review of any improvement plan |
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664 | 677 | | developed pursuant to Section 7 of this act, and a statement of |
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665 | 678 | | whether the Board concludes that any deficiency identified has been |
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666 | 679 | | satisfactorily addressed, or a s tatement from the Board that an |
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667 | 680 | | improvement plan, if any, was satisfactorily followed by the Just ice |
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668 | 681 | | or judge. |
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669 | 682 | | 3. The Board shall grant each Justice or judge who recei ves an |
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670 | 683 | | election-year evaluation the opportunity to meet with the Board at |
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671 | 684 | | its next meeting or otherwise respond to the evaluation no la ter |
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672 | 685 | | than ten (10) days following his or her receip t of the evaluation. |
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673 | 686 | | If the meeting is held or a response is made, the Board may revise |
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674 | 687 | | the evaluation as it sees fit. |
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675 | 688 | | |
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677 | 691 | | 2 |
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678 | 692 | | 3 |
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679 | 693 | | 4 |
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680 | 694 | | 5 |
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681 | 695 | | 6 |
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682 | 696 | | 7 |
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683 | 697 | | 8 |
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684 | 698 | | 9 |
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685 | 699 | | 10 |
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686 | 700 | | 11 |
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687 | 701 | | 12 |
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688 | 702 | | 13 |
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689 | 703 | | 14 |
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690 | 704 | | 15 |
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691 | 705 | | 16 |
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692 | 706 | | 17 |
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693 | 707 | | 18 |
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694 | 708 | | 19 |
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695 | 709 | | 20 |
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696 | 710 | | 21 |
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697 | 711 | | 22 |
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698 | 712 | | 23 |
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699 | 713 | | 24 |
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700 | 714 | | |
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701 | 715 | | C. After the requirements of subsection B of this section are |
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702 | 716 | | met, the Council shall make a recommendation regarding the |
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703 | 717 | | performance of each Justice or judge who declares his or her intent |
---|
704 | 718 | | to stand for reelection or retention. The recommendations must be |
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705 | 719 | | stated as "meets performance standard " or "does not meet performance |
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706 | 720 | | standard". For a Justice or judge to receive a designation of "does |
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707 | 721 | | not meet performance standard ", there must be a majority vote by the |
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708 | 722 | | Council members that the particular Justice or judge should receive |
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709 | 723 | | such a recommendation. |
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710 | 724 | | D. Once the election-year evaluation is fi nalized, the Office |
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711 | 725 | | shall share the performance ev aluations for district and associate |
---|
712 | 726 | | judges with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the |
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713 | 727 | | Administrative Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts. |
---|
714 | 728 | | SECTION 7. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
---|
715 | 729 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1677 of Title 20, unless there |
---|
716 | 730 | | is created a duplication in numbering , reads as follows: |
---|
717 | 731 | | A. 1. If the Office of Judicial Performance Evalua tion |
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718 | 732 | | recommends, pursuant to Section 5 of t his act, that a Justice or |
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719 | 733 | | judge receive an improveme nt plan, the Board of Judicial Performance |
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720 | 734 | | Evaluation shall determine whether an individua l judicial |
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721 | 735 | | improvement plan is appropriate. If the Board determines a n |
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722 | 736 | | improvement plan is appropriate, the Offi ce shall then develop an |
---|
723 | 737 | | improvement plan for such Ju stice or judge. After the Board reviews |
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724 | 738 | | |
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726 | 741 | | 2 |
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727 | 742 | | 3 |
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728 | 743 | | 4 |
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729 | 744 | | 5 |
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730 | 745 | | 6 |
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731 | 746 | | 7 |
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732 | 747 | | 8 |
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733 | 748 | | 9 |
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734 | 749 | | 10 |
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735 | 750 | | 11 |
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736 | 751 | | 12 |
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737 | 752 | | 13 |
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738 | 753 | | 14 |
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739 | 754 | | 15 |
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740 | 755 | | 16 |
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741 | 756 | | 17 |
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742 | 757 | | 18 |
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743 | 758 | | 19 |
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744 | 759 | | 20 |
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745 | 760 | | 21 |
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746 | 761 | | 22 |
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747 | 762 | | 23 |
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748 | 763 | | 24 |
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749 | 764 | | |
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750 | 765 | | and approves the improvement plan, the Office shall have the |
---|
751 | 766 | | responsibility for implementing and overseeing the improve ment plan. |
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752 | 767 | | 2. Once the Justice or judg e has completed the improvement |
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753 | 768 | | plan, the Office shall co nvey the results of the improvement plan to |
---|
754 | 769 | | the Board. The Office shall maintain a copy of th e improvement plan |
---|
755 | 770 | | and the results in its files. |
---|
756 | 771 | | B. If a Justice or judge is required to complete an impro vement |
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757 | 772 | | plan pursuant to this section and he or she fail s to satisfactorily |
---|
758 | 773 | | complete the requirements of such improvement plan, the Board shall |
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759 | 774 | | automatically issue a "does not meet performance standard " |
---|
760 | 775 | | designation on his or her performance evaluation and s hall advise |
---|
761 | 776 | | the Council on Judicial Complaints of such designation in the form |
---|
762 | 777 | | of a complaint. |
---|
763 | 778 | | C. Upon the completion of an improvement plan, the Offi ce shall |
---|
764 | 779 | | share the results of the improvement plan as follows: |
---|
765 | 780 | | 1. For special judges, with the Chief Justi ce of the Supreme |
---|
766 | 781 | | Court, the Presiding Administrative Judge of the judicial district |
---|
767 | 782 | | in which the special judge serves and any judge by administrative |
---|
768 | 783 | | orders in the role of a direct supervisor of the special judge of |
---|
769 | 784 | | the judicial district in which the spec ial judge serves, and the |
---|
770 | 785 | | Administrative Director of the Administrative Office o f the Courts; |
---|
771 | 786 | | and |
---|
772 | 787 | | |
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774 | 790 | | 2 |
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775 | 791 | | 3 |
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776 | 792 | | 4 |
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777 | 793 | | 5 |
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778 | 794 | | 6 |
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779 | 795 | | 7 |
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780 | 796 | | 8 |
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781 | 797 | | 9 |
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782 | 798 | | 10 |
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783 | 799 | | 11 |
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784 | 800 | | 12 |
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785 | 801 | | 13 |
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786 | 802 | | 14 |
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787 | 803 | | 15 |
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788 | 804 | | 16 |
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789 | 805 | | 17 |
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790 | 806 | | 18 |
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791 | 807 | | 19 |
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792 | 808 | | 20 |
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793 | 809 | | 21 |
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794 | 810 | | 22 |
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795 | 811 | | 23 |
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796 | 812 | | 24 |
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797 | 813 | | |
---|
798 | 814 | | 2. For district and associate judges, with the Chief Justice of |
---|
799 | 815 | | the Supreme Court and the Administrative Director of the |
---|
800 | 816 | | Administrative Office of the Courts. |
---|
801 | 817 | | SECTION 8. NEW LAW A new sec tion of law to be codified |
---|
802 | 818 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1678 of Title 20, unless there |
---|
803 | 819 | | is created a duplication in number ing, reads as follows: |
---|
804 | 820 | | A member of the Board of Judicial Performance Evalua tion or an |
---|
805 | 821 | | employee of the Office of Judicial Perform ance Evaluation shall |
---|
806 | 822 | | disclose any profess ional or personal relationship with a Justice or |
---|
807 | 823 | | judge that may affect an unbiased eva luation of the Justice or |
---|
808 | 824 | | judge, including involvement with any litigation involving the |
---|
809 | 825 | | Justice or judge and the member or empl oyee, the member's or |
---|
810 | 826 | | employee's family, or the member's or employee's financial |
---|
811 | 827 | | interests. The Board may require, by a vote, th e recusal of one of |
---|
812 | 828 | | its members or the Office's employee because of a rela tionship with |
---|
813 | 829 | | a Justice or judge. |
---|
814 | 830 | | SECTION 9. NEW LAW A new section of l aw to be codified |
---|
815 | 831 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1679 of Title 20, unless there |
---|
816 | 832 | | is created a duplication in numbe ring, reads as follows: |
---|
817 | 833 | | A. 1. Except as specifically provided by law, all performance |
---|
818 | 834 | | evaluations, personal information, oral or written information, |
---|
819 | 835 | | content of any improvement plans, narratives, recommendations, and |
---|
820 | 836 | | any matter discussed by the Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation |
---|
821 | 837 | | |
---|
823 | 840 | | 2 |
---|
824 | 841 | | 3 |
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825 | 842 | | 4 |
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826 | 843 | | 5 |
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827 | 844 | | 6 |
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828 | 845 | | 7 |
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829 | 846 | | 8 |
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830 | 847 | | 9 |
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831 | 848 | | 10 |
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832 | 849 | | 11 |
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833 | 850 | | 12 |
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834 | 851 | | 13 |
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835 | 852 | | 14 |
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836 | 853 | | 15 |
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837 | 854 | | 16 |
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838 | 855 | | 17 |
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839 | 856 | | 18 |
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840 | 857 | | 19 |
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841 | 858 | | 20 |
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842 | 859 | | 21 |
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843 | 860 | | 22 |
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844 | 861 | | 23 |
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845 | 862 | | 24 |
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846 | 863 | | |
---|
847 | 864 | | concerning a performance evaluation or improvement plan is |
---|
848 | 865 | | confidential. |
---|
849 | 866 | | 2. All surveys must allow for th e participant's name to remain |
---|
850 | 867 | | confidential. Comments in surveys are confidential but may be |
---|
851 | 868 | | summarized in aggregate for use in performance evaluation |
---|
852 | 869 | | narratives. |
---|
853 | 870 | | B. Members of the Board of Judicial Performance E valuation and |
---|
854 | 871 | | employees of the Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation shall not |
---|
855 | 872 | | publicly discuss the performance evaluation of a pa rticular Justice |
---|
856 | 873 | | or judge. |
---|
857 | 874 | | SECTION 10. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
---|
858 | 875 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1680 of Title 20, unless there |
---|
859 | 876 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
---|
860 | 877 | | A. The Board of Judicial P erformance Evaluation sha ll promptly |
---|
861 | 878 | | approve or reject judicial perf ormance evaluations submitted by the |
---|
862 | 879 | | Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation. |
---|
863 | 880 | | B. The Board of Judicial Performance Evaluation shall have the |
---|
864 | 881 | | following powers and duties: |
---|
865 | 882 | | 1. Promulgate rules concerning: |
---|
866 | 883 | | a. the performance evaluation of Justices and judg es by |
---|
867 | 884 | | the Office of Judicial Performanc e Evaluation based on |
---|
868 | 885 | | performance evaluation criteria se t forth in Section 4 |
---|
869 | 886 | | of this act, and |
---|
870 | 887 | | |
---|
872 | 890 | | 2 |
---|
873 | 891 | | 3 |
---|
874 | 892 | | 4 |
---|
875 | 893 | | 5 |
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876 | 894 | | 6 |
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877 | 895 | | 7 |
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878 | 896 | | 8 |
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879 | 897 | | 9 |
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880 | 898 | | 10 |
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881 | 899 | | 11 |
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882 | 900 | | 12 |
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883 | 901 | | 13 |
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884 | 902 | | 14 |
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885 | 903 | | 15 |
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886 | 904 | | 16 |
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887 | 905 | | 17 |
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888 | 906 | | 18 |
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889 | 907 | | 19 |
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890 | 908 | | 20 |
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891 | 909 | | 21 |
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892 | 910 | | 22 |
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893 | 911 | | 23 |
---|
894 | 912 | | 24 |
---|
895 | 913 | | |
---|
896 | 914 | | b. the creation of a standards matrix or scorecard |
---|
897 | 915 | | related to the performance ev aluation criteria set |
---|
898 | 916 | | forth in Section 4 of this act; |
---|
899 | 917 | | 2. Review data, prepared nar ratives, and recommendations made |
---|
900 | 918 | | by the Office of Judi cial Performance Evaluation; |
---|
901 | 919 | | 3. Approve or reject the performance evaluations of Justices |
---|
902 | 920 | | and judges submitted by the Office of Judicial Performance |
---|
903 | 921 | | Evaluation; |
---|
904 | 922 | | 4. Vote as to whether the Justice or judge meets th e |
---|
905 | 923 | | performance standard based upon the memb er's review of all the |
---|
906 | 924 | | information available to the Council and the Office 's performance |
---|
907 | 925 | | evaluation; and |
---|
908 | 926 | | 5. Determine whether information submitted during the |
---|
909 | 927 | | performance evaluation process shall be deemed a compl aint. |
---|
910 | 928 | | SECTION 11. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023. |
---|
911 | 929 | | |
---|