Editorial: Authority is given to chief judge

Friday, Sept. 24, 1999 | 9:37 a.m.

It's been a tough journey, but rules finally have been adopted that should help provide for a more efficient delivery of justice in our courts. The Nevada Supreme Court this week approved rules that should result in greater accountability for District Court judges. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Rose told state legislators earlier this year that some District Court judges in Clark County weren't working hard enough and handling their fair share of cases, placing a burden on other judges. Rose believed what was needed was giving more power to the District Court's chief judges in Clark and Washoe counties, to ensure that all judges were carrying their weight.

The Supreme Court had the authority to unilaterally adopt the rules, but instead tried to work with the District Court judges to have them devise their own rules that met the Supreme Court's general guidelines for accountability. Unlike in Washoe County where District Court judges readily agreed to a strong chief judge, there was resistance here. The first attempt by District Court judges to create some semblance of authority for a chief judge was rejected by the Supreme Court as being too weak. Eventually the District Court judges were able to agree -- by a razor-thin 9-7 margin -- to give District Court Chief Judge Lee Gates the power he needs.

As the Sun's Bill Gang reported Wednesday, the rules will allow the chief judge to assign and direct workloads. In addition, judges will have to be in the courthouse most of the day and coordinate their vacation days with the chief judge. Despite the concerns of some judges, their independence won't be undermined by what genuinely are nominal standards. There also will be safeguards, with the rules permitting two-thirds of judges to either remove a chief judge or overturn his edicts. This is an important first step to make the local judicial system work more efficiently and encourage accountability.