Members present: Chief Justice Gerry Alexander, co-chair; Judge James M. Murphy, co-chair; Judge Christine Cary; Judge James F. Gavin; Judge Vicki Hogan; Judge Stephen Holman; Judge Frank L. Kurtz; and Ms. Mary McQueen

Members absent: Judge William W. Baker; Mr. Dale Carlisle; Judge Christopher E. Culp; Judge Robert Harris; Judge Ronald Kessler; Justice Barbara Madsen; Judge Robert McSeveney; Mr. Jan Eric Peterson; Judge James M. Riehl; Judge Michael Roewe; Judge Jay Roof; and Judge Karen Seinfeld

Staff present: Mr. Gil Austin; Ms. Jude Cryderman; Mr. Doug Haake; Ms. Janet McLane; Mr. Victor Moore; and Ms. Yvonne Pettus

The meeting was called to order by Chief Justice Gerry Alexander, co-chair.

It was moved by Judge Kurtz and seconded by Judge Holman to approve the minutes of the January 19, 2001 meeting as published. The motion passed unanimously.

OLD BUSINESS

Ms. McQueen reported the conference has been set for June 11 and 12 in Olympia. Monday's morning session will be a business meeting with the focus being the presiding judge rule. The afternoon session will cover trial court coordination councils. June's BJA meeting will be held Sunday evening.

ARLJ 5.3

Ms. McQueen reported that Mayor Hanson (Everett) had raised two areas of concern with the presiding judges' bill: 1) that some of the court administrators are not actually meeting the minimum qualifications to hold that position; and 2) "control" the budget has been interpreted to mean demand additional moneys.

Ms. McQueen advised that the BJA will have an opportunity to participate in drafting a model court administrator's job description. Ms. McQueen suggested changing "control" budget to "preparation and administration" of the budget. The Board briefly discussed the proposed changes to ARLJ 5.3.

It was moved by Judge Kurtz and seconded by Judge Holman to approved changing "control" to "preparation and administration" of the budget. The motion passed unanimously.

Presentation of the Pierce County Audit Final Report

Judge Hogan provided a brief overview of the final report (copies were provided). She stated that Pierce County began to implement some of the needed changes. Judge Hogan recognized Yvonne Pettus for the hard work she put into the superior court audit.

Unpublished Opinions

Ms. McQueen advised there's a bill in the legislature that would require all of the court of appeals opinions to be published. The Board briefly discussed the bill. AOC staff is to provide information regarding fiscal impact.

Executive Committee

Chief Justice Alexander advised the Committee holds weekly telephonic meetings. The conference calls are held Monday at 5:00 p.m. Along with the BJA executive committee, the association legislative chairs and lobbyists participate in the weekly meeting.

Best Practices Committee

Judge Hogan reported the first meeting was well attended (draft minutes provided). The committee discussed the work of the JEA committee and expectations of the Best Practices Committee. Presentations were made to the committee on the input/output model and the Pierce County performance audit.

The Board briefly discussed possible areas of interest to the Committee. Judge Murphy requested the Committee provide the Board with a list of issues following the Committee's March meeting.

CJC Rule 24

Judge Murphy advised of the appointment of Judges Hogan and Van Deren to review the proposed rule. Judge Roewe will also appoint a representative from the DMCJA.

Legislative Committee

Mr. Moore reported:

1. Jury service bill is hung-up in the House;
2. Jury compensation bill is in Senate Ways and Means;
3. Benton/Franklin Judge passed out of both judicial committees;
4. Mandatory arbitration in district courts - WSTLA and defense lawyers testified against bill;
5. Emancipation of minors - cleared Senate judiciary, but House raised concerns;
6. Elected court commissioners is up for hearing on Tuesday; and
7. Pro tem bill is doing fine. WSTLA supports the constitutional amendment.

The pro tem bill requires minor changes, such as taking out retired judges, presiding judge can assign an elected judge without consent of parties, publish annually a list of pro tem judges, and size of list depends on the number of judges in that court.

It was moved by Judge Kurtz and seconded by Judge Cary to approve the proposed rule with the understanding that the Executive Committee can modify as necessary. The motion passed unanimously.

Mr. Moore continued, the Supreme Court and AOC budgets will come before the House Appropriations Committee on Monday, February 19.

The Board briefly discussed the budget picture, which is grimmer than anticipated.

Long-range Planning Committee

Mr. Coplen reported the Committee would be comprised of a representative from each court level. The Committee will be chaired by Judge Murphy, BJA co-chair.

Salary Commission

Chief Justice Alexander, Judge Harris, Judge Riehl, Judge Costello, Dean Logan, Mary McQueen and the Kitsap County Bar President attended the hearing in Port Orchard. They spoke to the proposed increases of 3.5% for the first year and 2.2% for the second year.

Other Business

The Board was advised that Judge Greg Tripp is the representative to the Access to Justice Board.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Jude Cryderman