Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission

Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission

The Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission, which also serves as the Indiana Judicial Qualifications Commission, is a seven member panel chosen by the Indiana Bar Association and the Governor of Indiana to select judges to serve on the Indiana Circuit Court, Indiana Court of Appeals, and the Indiana Supreme Court. The commission is part of the Judicial Branch of the state government and reports directly to the state Supreme Court.

Duties

The commission is responsible for creating a list of three candidates to fill vacant positions on the state judiciary. The commission follows a set of guidelines in the state constitution to determine eligibility for the positions, and to ensure that they only nominate the best qualified candidates that are available. The Governor then chooses a candidate from the list to fill the vacant position. The commission has the authority to choose who, among the sitting supreme court associate justices, who will serve as Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court, and to certify who will be the senior judges on the lower state courts. The commission is also responsible for determining the qualifications of candidates who apply for state judgeship.cite web|url=http://www.in.gov/judiciary/jud-qual/about.html|title=About the Commission|accessdate=2008-08-05|publisher=IN.gov]

The commission is responsible for addressing complaint about the courts and investigating problems within the courts. The commission also audits the judges to ensures compliance with the Code of Judicial Conduct. Although the commissions has no power to enforce it's decisions, it does submit reports to the Supreme Court who decide what portion of their recommendations should be followed.

The commission is a constitutional body established by article six of the Constitution of Indiana. In addition to its constitutional authority the Indiana General Assembly has granted the commission additional statutory authority in the Indiana Code. [cite web|url= http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title33/ar38/ch13.html#IC33-38-13-1|title=Indiana Code|publisher=IN.gov|accessdate=2008-08-05]

Members

The commission has a total of seven members and is chaired by the Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court. Three of the members are citizens of Indiana appointed by the governor. Three other members are lawyers elected by the Indiana Bar Association. The Commission was established in 1970 by a constitutional amendment to replace the previous system of electing governors.

History

Under the original 1816 constitution of Indiana, judges were appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Indiana Senate, and would serve terms of six years. The system came to be criticized when Governor James B. Ray refused to reappoint two members of the Supreme Court for political reasons. [Woollen, pp. 57 & 60] A similar situation occurred during the term of Governor James Whitcomb when he also refused to reappoint two members because he thought they were too slow to resolve cases. [Woollen, p. 83] In 1851, Indiana adopted a new constitution and the positions on the courts were made publicly elected offices, but that method too quickly came under criticism as the position became even more politicized. The courts remained publicly elected until a series of amendments were passed in 1970 and 1971 that reorganized the state courts and established the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission to replace the method of publicly electing judges. The new system was intended to make to judicial branch of the government more independent by giving it measure of control over selecting it's own members, but limiting their power by making their choice subject to the approval of the governor.

References

oures

*cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=PCbZ8rS-84gC| title=Biographical and Historical Sketches of Early Indiana|author=Woollen, William Wesley|publisher=Ayer Publishing|year=1975|isbn=0405068964

External Links

*cite web|url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Indiana_Judicial_Nominating_Commission&action=edit&redlink=1|title=The Court Today|publisher=IN.gov|accessdate=2008-08-05
*cite web|url=http://www.in.gov/judiciary/jud-qual/|title=Judicial QualificationNominating Commission|accessdate=2008-08-05|publisher=IN.gov


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Judicial nominating commission — A judicial nominating commission (also judicial nominating committee, judicial nominating board) in the United States, is a body used by some U.S. states to recommend or select potential justices and judges for appointments by state governments.… …   Wikipedia

  • Indiana — This article is about the U.S. state of Indiana. For other uses, see Indiana (disambiguation). Hoosier State redirects here. For the passenger train, see Hoosier State (train). State of Indiana …   Wikipedia

  • Indiana — Indianan, Indianian /in dee an ee euhn/, adj., n. /in dee an euh/, n. 1. Robert (Robert Clarke), born 1928, U.S. painter of pop art. 2. a state in the central United States: a part of the Midwest. 5,490,179; 36,291 sq. mi. (93,995 sq. km). Cap.:… …   Universalium

  • Indiana Court of Appeals — The Indiana Court of Appeals is the intermediate level appellate court for the state of Indiana. It is the successor to the Indiana Appellate Court. Contents 1 History 2 Jurisdiction 3 Judges 4 …   Wikipedia

  • Constitution of Indiana — The 1816 (superseded) and 1851 Constitutions of the State of Indiana, located in the Indiana Statehouse Rotunda. There have been two Constitutions of the State of Indiana. The first constitution was created when the Territory of Indiana sent… …   Wikipedia

  • Outline of Indiana — The flag of the …   Wikipedia

  • Supreme Court of Indiana — The Supreme Court of Indiana is the state supreme court of Indiana. The court was established by Article Seven of the Indiana Constitution and is the highest judicial authority within Indiana. The court is located at Indianapolis within the north …   Wikipedia

  • Government of Indiana — The Government of Indiana is established and regulated by the Constitution of Indiana. The State level government consists of three branches, the judicial branch, the legislative branch, and the executive branch. The three branches balance share… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Indiana — The history of Indiana is an examination of the history, social activity, and development of the inhabitants and institutions within the borders of modern Indiana, a U.S. state in the Midwest. Indiana was inhabited by migratory tribes of Native… …   Wikipedia

  • Governor of Indiana — The Governor of Indiana is the chief executive officer of the government of Indiana. Elected to a four year term, the Governor is responsible for overseeing the day to day management of the functions of the state government. In 2008, Republican… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”