Editorial: Court could use strong chief judge

Tuesday, March 23, 1999 | 12:03 p.m.

On Wednesday the 27 District Court judges in Clark County will have an opportunity to show their commitment to improving the way justice works: At a special meeting the judges will decide whether to endorse a "strong chief judge" system, which should increase judicial accountability.

The way it works now, District Court judges can keep their own hours and take as much vacation time as they want. In addition, they can refuse to help out other judges by declining to accept part of their caseloads. Although there is a chief district judge, it is a position in name only since he doesn't have genuine oversight of other judges.

Judicial independence must be preserved, but it's important to note that judicial independence doesn't include laziness. The Legislature and the Nevada Supreme Court have expressed frustration that a few District Court judges are not handling their fair share of cases. For example, the number of jury trials held by judges in 1998 ranged from a low of nine to a high of 30, which demonstrates a need for judges to handle overflow trials when they wouldn't normally be in court.

The Sun's Bill Gang noted in an article Friday that the absence of a strong chief judge also can play havoc with something as basic as getting judges to attend meetings on administrative matters. For instance, the Family Division of the District Court went six months last year without having enough judges show up to constitute a quorum at their monthly meetings.

In an attempt to address these issues, a task force of judges is recommending some reforms. In the area of work hours, the task force is recommending that judges work 40-hour weeks and spend at least five hours a day in the courthouse; judges also would be limited to 21 days of vacation. The chief judge could also make sure that judges get their work done on time. In addition, the chief judge would oversee the court's calendar to ensure the caseload is as equitable as possible.

Judges who already put in long hours welcome the changes. It's not fair for them to have to pick up the slack for judges not doing their work. Further, it's important for all of those people who have business before the court to expect that their cases will be handled expeditiously, and not delayed because a judge likes to leave work early in the day.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Bob Rose told the Legislature last month that it was likely that the Supreme Court, which ultimately has administrative oversight of the District Court, would impose a strong chief judge system on the lower court. The task force has established a proposal that maintains independence for judges, yet establishes a framework that should help ensure judges put in a full day's work and operate efficiently. The District Court judges should support this reasonable plan.