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PART V
RULES FOR COURTS OF LIMITED
JURISDICTION
ADMINISTRATIVE RULES FOR COURTS
OF LIMITED JURISDICTION (ARLJ)
TABLE OF RULES
Rule
1 Rescinded
2 Scope of Rules
3 Definition of Terms
4 Code of Judicial Conduct
5 Presiding Judge, Multiple Judge Court District, Multiple District
Counties - Repealed
6 Records: Separate Dockets--Contents
7 Reserved
8 Reporting of Criminal Cases
9 Disclosure of Records
10 Case Information Cover Sheet
11 Misdemeanant Probation Department
12 Registration by Courts of Limited Jurisdiction
13 Limited Jurisdiction Courts are required to Record all Proceedings
Electronically
RULE 1
(RESCINDED)
RULE 2
SCOPE OF RULES
These rules shall govern the procedure of civil, criminal, and
infraction cases in all courts of limited jurisdiction inferior to the
superior court. They shall be construed to secure the just, speedy, and
inexpensive determination of every action. Failure to set forth herein any
provisions of common law or statute, not inconsistent with these rules,
shall not be construed as an implied repeal thereof.
RULE ARLJ 3
DEFINITION OF TERMS
As used in these rules, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
(1) "Court" means any court inferior to the superior court.
(2) "Judge" shall include every judicial officer
authorized, alone or with others, to hold or preside
over any court of limited jurisdiction, or any court
inferior to the superior court which may be hereinafter established.
(3) "Oaths" include affirmations.
(4) "Prosecuting Attorney" or "prosecutor" includes deputy
prosecuting attorneys, and city attorneys, corporation
counsel, and their deputies and assistants, or such
other persons as may be designated by statute or court rule.
(5) "Offenses against the State" shall, wherever
appropriate, include offenses against a county or a
city by virtue of violation of an ordinance or resolution.
(6) "City" shall be construed to include towns.
(7) "State", whenever appropriate, shall include a city or town.
[Amended effective September 1, 1989.]
ARLJ 4
CODE OF JUDICIAL CONDUCT
(1) The Code of Judicial Conduct (CJC) as adopted by the
Supreme Court of Washington shall apply to the judge of each
court subject to these rules, whether or not such judge has
been admitted to the Bar. It shall be the obligation of each
such judge to conduct his or her court and his or her
professional and personal relationships in accordance with
the same standards as are required of judges of courts of
record, except that CJC Canon 5(F), prohibiting judges from
practicing law, shall not apply to attorney-judges of courts
of limited jurisdiction who have been specifically
authorized by statute to practice law.
(2) The taking of photographs in the courtroom or radio
or television broadcasting or transmitting of judicial
proceedings from the courtroom during the progress of
judicial proceedings shall be governed by GR 16.
[Adopted effective July 1, 1963; amended effective October 1, 2002.]
RULE ARLJ 5
PRESIDING JUDGE, MULTIPLE JUDGE COURT DISTRICT,
MULTIPLE DISTRICT COUNTIES
[REPEALED]
[Amended effective May 6, 1988; September 1, 2000;
Repealed effective April 30, 2002.]
RULE 6
RECORDS: SEPARATE DOCKETS--CONTENTS
(a) Every court having criminal jurisdiction shall keep such records as
are required by law.
(b) Separate dockets shall be kept for criminal, traffic, civil, and
small claims actions. The required entries within the traffic and criminal
dockets shall be as required on the "Complaint/Citation Docket Form"
prescribed in CrRLJ 2.1. In civil and small claims dockets there shall be
entered:
(1) The title of all actions;
(2) The object of the action or proceeding;
(3) All filing, return, trial, and appearance dates;
(4) An abstract of every motion, rule, order and decision of the court;
(5) Every continuance, and for whom granted;
(6) All demands for a trial by jury, and by whom;
(7) The names of the jurors who appear and are sworn, the names of
witnesses sworn, and at whose request;
(8) An abstract of the verdict of the jury when received and other
proceedings in connection with the jury;
(9) An abstract of the judgment of the court and the amount thereof,
and all costs granted in connection therewith;
(10) The time of issuing execution, and an account of the debt and
costs, and the fees due to each person separately;
(11) The fact of a notice of appeal and the date thereof;
(12) Satisfaction of the judgment, or any money paid thereon and the
date thereof;
(13) Such other entries as may be material.
ARLJ 7
{Reserved}.
RULE 8
REPORTING OF CRIMINAL CASES
(a) Report of Disposition. Within 5 court days after the disposition by
a court of limited jurisdiction of a felony or gross misdemeanor charge or
misdemeanor charges which have been reported to the Washington State Patrol
Section on Identification, whether the disposition be a plea of guilty or
by deferral or suspension of imposition of sentence, or a finding of
guilty, or not guilty after trial, or by a dismissal of the charge, the
court clerk shall report such disposition to the Section on a disposition
form approved by the Administrator for the Courts. When a sentence has been
deferred or suspended, the report to the Section shall indicate the length
of time over which such suspension or deferral is to be effective. At the
conclusion of the time period for deferral or suspension of sentence, the
court clerk shall forward an amended disposition form to the Section
showing the actual disposition of the case.
(b) Report of Appeal. If an appeal is taken from the disposition made
by a court of limited jurisdiction, the court clerk shall, within 5 court
days of the taking of the appeal, notify the Section on an amended
disposition form. In the event that the result of any proceeding changes or
otherwise makes inaccurate the information forwarded on the original
disposition report, the court clerk shall prepare and forward to the
Section a supplemental disposition report on a form approved by the
Administrator for the Courts indicating thereon the information necessary
to correct the current status of the disposition of charges against the
subject maintained in the records of the Section.
RULE ARLJ 9
DISCLOSURE OF RECORDS
(a) Public Records. Unless the trial judge rules otherwise in a
particular case, the following are considered public records
and may be viewed and copied by the public:
(1) Court pleadings;
(2) Dockets, both civil and criminal, regardless of the
current status of the proceeding;
(3) Indexes to civil and criminal cases;
(4) Tape recordings of court proceedings;
(5) Search warrants, affidavits, and inventories, after
execution and return of the warrant.
(b) Private Records. The following are considered exempt from
disclosure unless they have been admitted into evidence,
incorporated into a court pleading, or are the subject of a
stipulation on the record which places them into public record:
(1) Witness statements and police reports;
(2) Presentence reports and reports related to compliance
with conditions of sentence;
(3) Copies of driving records or criminal history records
subject to RCW 10.97;
(4) Correspondence received by the court regarding
sentencing and compliance with the terms of probation.
(c) Quasi-Public Documents. The following are not subject to
public review, but are subject to review by the defendant
and the defendants lawyer:
(1) Witness statements;
(2) Presentence reports and reports related to compliance
with conditions of sentence;
(3) Copies of driving records or criminal history records
subject to RCW 10.97;
(4) Correspondence received by the court regarding
sentencing and compliance with the terms of probation,
except when the information is provided on the
condition it remain confidential or when a finding of
good cause is made for its confidentiality.
(d) Court Assistance.
(1) Court facilities are available to the public to assist
in disclosure, subject to local court rule.
(2) For security purposes, the court may require
identification from the reviewing party.
(e) Judicial Review. To assure that only public records are
reviewed by the public, judicial review of disclosure may be
requested by the prosecuting authority, defendant, court
clerks, or other interested parties. The court may withhold
dissemination until a hearing may reasonably be held.
Following the hearing, the court may make such restrictive
orders as are necessary.
(f) Statutes Not Superseded. Nothing in this rule shall be
construed to supersede existing statutes or subsequent
amendmentsthereto.
[Adopted effective September 1, 1987.]
ARLJ 10
RULE 10
CASE INFORMATION COVER SHEET
(1) Each new civil filing, except in infraction cases, shall
be accompanied by a Case Information Cover Sheet prepared and
submitted by the plaintiff. The minimum requirements of this
Case Information Cover Sheet shall be established by the Court
Management Council in coordination with the Office of the
Administrator for the Courts. Any additional case flow
information deemed necessary for the management of cases by a
court must be approved by the Office of the Administrator for the
Courts.
(Effective September 1, 1999.)
ARLJ 11
Misdemeanant Probation Department
RULE 11 PROBATION DEPARTMENT
RULE 11.1 DEFINITION
A misdemeanant probation department, if a court elects to
establish one, is an entity that provides services designed to
assist the court in the management of criminal justice and
thereby aid in the preservation of public order and safety. This
entity may consist of probation officers and probation clerks.
The method of providing these services shall be established by
the presiding judge of the local court to meet the specific needs
of the court.
RULE 11.2 QUALIFICATIONS AND CORE SERVICES OF PROBATION
DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL
(a) Probation Officer Qualifications.
(1) A minimum of a bachelor of arts or bachelor of science
degree that provides the necessary education and skills in
dealing with complex legal and human issues, as well as
competence in making decisions and using discretionary judgment.
A course of study in sociology, psychology, or criminal justice
is preferred.
(2) Counseling skills necessary to evaluate and act on
offender crisis, assess offender needs, motivate offenders, and
make recommendations to the court.
(3) Education and training necessary to communicate
effectively, both orally and in writing, to interview and counsel
offenders with a wide variety of offender problems, including but
not limited to alcoholism, domestic violence, mental illness,
sexual deviancy; to testify in court, to communicate with
referral resources, and to prepare legal documents and reports.
(4) Anyone not meeting the above qualifications and having
competently held the position of probation officer for the past
two years shall be deemed to have met the qualifications.
(b) Probation Officer - Core Services.
(1) Conduct pre/post-sentence investigations with face to
face interviews and extensive research that includes but is not
limited to criminal history, contact with victims, personal
history, social and economic needs, community resource needs,
counseling/treatment needs, work history, family and employer
support, and complete written pre/post-sentence reports, which
includes sentencing recommendations to the court.
(2) For offenders referred to the misdemeanant probation
department, determine their risk to the community using a
standardized classification system with a minimum of monthly face
to face interviews for offenders classified at the highest level.
(3) Evaluate offenders’ social problems, amenability to
different types of treatment programs, and determine appropriate referral.
(4) Supervise offenders with face to face interviews
depending on risk classification system.
(5) Oversee community agencies providing services required
of offenders with input to the judicial officer (e.g.
alcohol/drug, domestic violence, sexual deviancy, and mental illness).
(6) Other Duties. The core services listed under both
probation officer and probation clerk are not meant to exclude
other duties that may be performed by either classification of
employee or other court clerical staff, such as record checks,
calendaring court proceedings, and accounting of fees.
(c) Probation Clerk Qualifications.
(1) High school or equivalent diploma.
(2) Efficient in all facets of basic clerical skills
including but not limited to keyboarding, computer familiarity
and competence, filing, and positive public interaction.
(3) Above average ability in dealing with stress and
difficult clients.
(4) Ability to complete and perform multi-task assignments.
(d) Probation Clerk - Core Services.
(1) Monitor compliance of treatment obligations with
professional treatment providers.
(2) Report offender non-compliance with conditions of
sentence to the court.
(3) Coordinate treatment referral information, and monitor
community agencies for statutory reporting compliance.
(4) Anyone not meeting the above qualifications and having
held the position of probation clerk for the past two years shall
be deemed to have met the qualifications.
(5) Other Duties. The core services listed under both
probation officer and probation clerk are not meant to exclude
other duties that may be performed by either classification of
employee or other court clerical staff, such as record checks,
calendaring court proceedings, and accounting of fees.
RULE 11.3 STATUTORY PROBATION SERVICE FEES TO BE USED FOR PROBATION SERVICES
All positions, which are funded by statutory probation
service fees, shall be limited to working with individuals or
cases who are on probation. Any additional funds raised from
statutory probation services fees beyond what is necessary to
fund the positions in the probation department shall be used to
provide additional levels of probation services.
[Adopted effective September 1, 2001.]
ARLJ 12
REGISTRATION BY COURTS OF LIMITED JURISDICTION
(1) All courts of limited jurisdiction shall register with the
Administrative Office of the Courts. The registration shall
include the name of the court, address, telephone number and the
names of judicial officers and the court clerk or administrator.
The registration shall include the days of the week and the hours
the court is open for business to the public. The official
registration must be updated annually by each court on or before
July 1 and also within 30 days from the date of any changes in
the information previously supplied to the Administrative Office
of the Courts.
(2) The failure of a court to register as required by this rule
shall not affect in any way the power or authority of a court.
[Adopted effective September 1, 2002; amended effective November 8, 2005.]
ARLJ 13
LIMITED JURISDICTION COURTS ARE REQUIRED TO RECORD ALL
PROCEEDINGS ELECTRONICALLY
a) Generally. All limited jurisdiction courts shall make
an electronic record of all proceedings and retain the
record for at least as long as the record retention schedule
dictates.
b) Nonelectronic Record in Emergency. In the event of an
equipment failure or other situation making an electronic
recording impossible, the court may order the proceeding to
be recorded by nonelectronic means. The nonelectronic
record must be made at the court’s expense, and in the event
of an appeal, any necessary transcription of the
nonelectronic record must be made at the court’s expense.
[Adopted effective October 1, 2002.]
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