Commission on The Future of the West Virginia Judicial System Final Report CONTENTS Forward .................................................................... i The Commission ..................................................................... iii Chapter 1: The History ............................................................. 1 Chapter 2: The Context ............................................................ 4 Chapter 3: The Methods .......................................................... 11 Chapter 4: The Plan ................................................................. 15 Chapter 5: The Recommendations Access to Justice .................................................................... 18 Expedition and Timeliness ....................................................... 32 Equality, Fairness, and Integrity ............................................... 46 Independence and Accountability ............................................ 58 Appendices Appendix A: Supreme Court Administrative Order Appendix B: Overview of the West Virginia Judicial System Appendix C: Data Collection Forms and Summaries Appendix D: Recommendation Summary Appendix E: Acknowledgments FOREWORD The thirty-eight members of the Commission on the Future of the West Virginia Judicial System represent a broad spectrum of West Virginians. Some of us are attorneys, business leaders, or labor leaders. Others are leaders from the executive, legislative, or judicial branches of State government. Some head civic organizations and educational institutions. We vary by age, sex, race, educational background, politics, the area of the State we call home, and in many other ways. Despite our differences, we are united by our concern for the citizens of West Virginia and our belief that West Virginia’s court system must change to meet the demands of our changing society and to better serve the citizens of this great State. When the Supreme Court of Appeals appointed us to serve on this landmark Commission in August 1997, we dedicated ourselves to conducting a comprehensive review of the state of West Virginia’s judicial system while keeping in mind the far-reaching implications of our task. We engaged in extensive information gathering. We held nine public hearings across West Virginia; surveyed all judicial officers and court personnel; distributed exit questionnaires to petit jurors; surveyed a random sample of State Bar members; conducted a statewide public opinion poll; and accepted submissions through the mail and E-mail. We thank the many West Virginians whose thoughtful contributions broadened and enhanced the recommendations in this report. The Commission reached consensus on the vast majority of the recommendations found in this report; the only written dissent concerns the selection of judges. Some of these recommendations are directed to the Supreme Court of Appeals, others will require legislative action, and still others will require a coordinated effort between all three branches of government. It is our hope that this report will be much more than a scholarly overview of West Virginia’s court system. The implementation of the recommendations contained within this report will help create a system of justice that is accessible to all, timely in its decision-making, fair and equal in its treatment of those who use it, and accountable to the State’s citizens. i THE COMMISSION David C. Hardesty, Jr., Chair President, 1996-98 President Mountain State Bar West Virginia University Henderson, Henderson & Staples, L.C. Michael Bonasso, Esq. Samuel Hicks Flaherty, Sensabaugh & Bonasso President President, 1997-98 County Commission Association Defense Trial Counsel of West Virginia Virginia Jackson Hopkins, Esq. Jim Bowen Executive Director President Prosecuting Attorneys’ Institute West Virginia AFL-CIO Patrick Kelly, Esq. Adell Chandler General Counsel to the Governor President, 1997-98 County and Circuit Clerk Association Honorable Robert S. Kiss Circuit Clerk, Cabell County Speaker West Virginia House of Delegates The Honorable Franklin D. Cleckley Professor Jack Klim West Virginia University College of Law President D & E Industries, Inc. Otis G. Cox Secretary James R. Lee Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety President, 1996-97 WV Association of Probation Officer Honorable Oshel B. Craigo Probation Officer, First Judicial Circuit Chair, Finance Committee West Virginia Senate Beth Longo President, 1997-98 Honorable John R. Frazier Family Law Master Association President, 1997-98 Family Law Master, Region 12 West Virginia Judicial Association Circuit Judge, Ninth Judicial Circuit Karen Lukens Board of Directors Elaine Harris, Subcommittee Chair League of Women Voters International Representative Communication Workers of America Dr. Henry R. Marockie Superintendent Cheryl L. Henderson, Esq. West Virginia Department of Education ii Laurie McKeown Executive Director Coordinator Public Defender Services TEAM for West Virginia Children Laura Rose, Esq. Laura Rose & Associates President, 1997-98 Honorable Harold K. Michael West Virginia Trial Lawyers Chair, Finance Committee West Virginia House of Delegates Honorable W. Richard Staton Hershel Mullins Chair, Judiciary Committee President, 1998 West Virginia House of Delegates Magistrate Association Magistrate, Monongalia County Caroline Stoker Magistrate Court Clerk Catherine Munster, Esq., Subcommittee Chair Monongalia County Court Improvement Oversight Board McNeer, Highland, McMunn &Varner Ken Summers President and CEO D.C. Offutt, Jr., Esq., Subcommittee Chair One Valley Bank Offutt, Fisher & Nord President, 1997-98 Thomas R. Tinder, Esq., Subcommittee Chair West Virginia State Bar Executive Director West Virginia State Bar Joan E. Ohl Secretary Honorable Earl Ray Tomblin Department of Health & Human Resources President West Virginia Senate Larry Paxton Director Honorable William R. Wooton Appalachian Center for Independent Living Chair, Judiciary Committee West Virginia Senate Bruce Perrone, Esq. Litigation Director Legal Aid Society of Charleston Robert E. "Bob" Phalen President UMWA, District 17 Bill Raney President West Virginia Coal Association Diane Reese Team Coordinator West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence John A. Rogers, Esq. iii CHAPTER 1 performance; THE Fourth, make recommendations as to structural, organizational, and procedural HISTORY changes that will ensure a just, effective, responsive, and efficient court system into the next century; and Laws and institutions are constantly tending to Fifth, develop a general plan to implement the gravitate. Like clocks, they recommendations. must be occasionally cleansed, and wound up, and set to true The Commission’s membership was broad- time. based and diverse and reflected the Supreme Court’s interest in forming a partnership with --HENRY WARD BEECHER the other two branches of government, the bar, private-sector business and labor interests, advocacy groups, and other community based The Supreme Court of Appeals of West organizations to develop a plan for the court Virginia appointed the Commission on the system. Future of the West Virginia Judicial System in the Fall of 1997 to conduct a comprehensive At its first meeting in October of 1997, the review of the State’s court system. Citing the Commission adopted a set of guiding lack of a thorough, critical review of the principles in order to focus its deliberations on system since the “Judicial Reorganization what the court system should achieve, and not Amendment” of 1974 and the changing nature --at least initially-- on what the court system of the problems that the court system was should look like. The strategy was to identify being asked to address, the Supreme Court’s the desired outcomes and then design the Administrative Order of October 2, 1997 structures and processes that would achieve established the Commission and directed that those outcomes. The five principles, based on it: nationally recognized standards of court performance, also express the judicial system’s First, examine the trends, both internal and fundamental values. The Commission termed external to the court system, which are these principles the Criteria for Excellence in affecting the role of the court as an institution Judicial Administration. and the delivery of its services; The first is ACCESS TO JUSTICE -- Second, assess the performance of the court insuring that all people can use the courts by system in light of established standards of eliminating physical, economic, and procedural fairness, accessibility, timeliness, and barriers and by making the justice system accountability; convenient, understandable, and affordable. Third, identify the strengths upon which to Second, EXPEDITION AND TIMELINESS build, as well as the obstacles to overcome, to -- insuring that cases are processed in a timely enable the court system to improve its 1 manner and resolved with finality, that site. A summary of the research methods and schedules are met, and that changes in laws information collection is included as Chapter 3 and procedures are promptly implemented. of this report. Third, EQUALITY, FAIRNESS, AND During this process, the Commission heard INTEGRITY-- insuring that the courts from many differing perspectives and interests. respect the dignity of every person, regardless Some of the submissions were poignant, some of race, class, gender, or other characteristic, addressed very specific individual concerns, that court procedures adhere to relevant laws, but all were thoughtful and