20-3204. Same; surveys; performance standards; plans and procedures; public recommendations; adoption of rules; immunity; indemnification.
20-3204
20-3204. Same; surveys; performance standards; plansand procedures; public recommendations; adoption of rules; immunity;indemnification.(a) Thecommission shall, with the aid of professionals where appropriate:
(1) Conductsurveys of such persons as the commission determines to be appropriate who havehad sufficient experience with a judge or justice to form an opinion about theperformance of the judge or justice, such as attorneys, litigants, jurors,witnesses, court staff and others. The surveys shall be dispersed,collectedand tabulated by anindependent organization or in any other manner that insures confidentiality.The surveys shall ask those surveyed to evaluate the judges and justices onsuch judge's or justice's ability, integrity, impartiality, communicationskills, professionalism, temperament and administrative capacity suitable tothe jurisdiction and level of court;
(2) develop clear, measurable performance standards uponwhich the surveyquestions are based;
(3) develop dissemination plans that:
(A) Protect confidentiality when the judicial performanceevaluation is usedonly for self-improvement;
(B) make the judicial performance evaluation results widelyavailable whenthey are to be used to assist voters in evaluating the performance of judgesand justices subject to retention elections; and
(C) make public recommendations regarding whether or not toretain judges andjustices subject to retention elections;
(4) develop a procedure for judges and justices to receiveand respond tosurvey results before such results are made public;
(5) establish a mechanism to incorporate evaluation resultsin designingjudicial education programs; and
(6) adopt rules for implementation of the judicialperformance evaluationprocess, subject to approval by the Kansas supreme court.
(b) The supreme court, the Kansas judicial council, the commission onjudicial performance, and thestaff or any committee of the commission shall be immune from suit andliability in any civil action for any act, error or omission occurring withinthe scope of their official duties pursuant to article 32 of chapter 20 of theKansas Statutes Annotated, and amendments thereto.
(c) Any agent under contract with the commission on judicial performanceshall be indemnified and held harmless by the state in any cause of actionarising out of such agent's use of information provided by the state within thescope of their contractual duties. Any such agent shall not be indemnified orheld harmless by the state inanycause of action arising out of such agent's intentional or negligent acts.
History: L. 2006, ch. 195, § 4;L. 2008, ch. 145, § 3; May 22.