Board Meetings
By J. Mark Weiss
Judicial Candidate Rating Change
The Board of Trustees approved a change to the KCBA judicial candidate rating system. Before the change, judicial candidates deemed qualified to serve as judges were given one of three ratings: “adequate,” “well-qualified” or “extremely well-qualified.” On recommendation of the Judicial Screening Committee, the board changed the “adequate” rating to “qualified.”
The reasoning was that judicial candidates tended not to emphasize the prior “adequate” rating because it could be construed to convey that the candidate was less desirable for the position. Changing the rating to “qualified” was deemed to be a more accurate reflection of the view of the candidate because all candidates who were rated “adequate” were qualified for the position sought. With this change, candidates who have an existing “adequate” rating are allowed to use the new “qualified” rating instead.
The board continues to look at the judicial screening process. Presently, two or three Supreme Court justices do not participate in the KCBA screening process. Criticisms received by the committee included that the ratings were biased or based on inadequate diversity.
The co-chairs of the Judicial Screening Committee indicate that they are at a disadvantage in responding to criticism because the screening process is necessarily kept strictly secret by the committee. Secrecy provides the assurance that qualifications of candidates can be discussed with complete frankness.
The committee is comprised of 70 members with diversity in terms of ethnic composition, practice areas and firm size and location. There are several layperson members on the committee.
Judicial Campaign Finance Reform Bill
The trustees are tracking a judicial campaign finance reform bill, SHB 1226. The bill would limit campaign contributions for local and county judicial campaigns to $675 and for appellate judicial campaigns to $1,350 per contributor. Last year, this bill made it through the House of Representatives, but stalled in the Senate. The bill is still active in this biennium and is sponsored by Rep. Shay Schual-Berke from Federal Way. The KCBA has endorsed SHB 1226.
Recently, John Ruhl met with the Superior Court Judges Association representatives and a member of the Supreme Court on the bill. The only complaint voiced by the judiciary was that some judges would like an exception to allow unlimited campaign contributions from family members.
United Way Award
The KCBA staff received an award from United Way of King County. This award is given to the top 5 percent of organizations whose employees participate in United Way giving. The board congratulated KCBA staff for giving back to the community.
New Bar Bulletin Publishing Contract
The trustees approved a new three-year publishing contract for the Bar Bulletin. Most noteworthy to readers is that the format of the Bar Bulletin will be changing, primarily so the Bar Bulletin can be mailed as a flat item instead of as a newspaper.
This article discusses selected issues that were before the Board of Trustees at its January 4, 2006 meeting. Complete minutes of this and other board meetings are available from the KCBA office.
J. Mark Weiss is KCBA Secretary/Trustee. He practices family law in Seattle and can be reached at 206-622-6707.
