CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- From revamping Supreme Court elections to raising the bar for county magistrates, West Virginia lawmakers are advancing a number of proposals this session to change the state's judicial branch.
The House of Delegates unanimously passed one bill Wednesday that would allow for special courts in the state's larger judicial circuits to handle complicated business disputes.
Speaker Richard Thompson has championed the concept as attractive to employers.
"In the 15 states that have business courts, there has been a very positive response from the business community," the Wayne County Democrat said in a statement. "Such business courts are best suited for complex commercial cases, which can then be better managed and mediated."
A study of the state's judiciary commissioned by Gov. Joe Manchin had touted possible benefits from such courts, while recommending further review in its November report.
That report also proposed creating a committee to recommend appointees whenever the governor must fill an open court seat. The House voted 90-8 to create an eight-member Judicial Vacancy Advisory Commission, making permanent an informal practice by Manchin and some of his recent predecessors.
Proposed by the governor, that bill now goes to the Senate. It would disclose both applications and letters of recommendations received by the commission, as well as its list of two to five candidates deemed best qualified and any accompanying report. The commission would also hold at least one public meeting while dealing with each vacancy.
But the bill would otherwise exempt all other records from the Freedom of Information Act, and hold its other meetings behind closed doors.
"That provision is meant to protect the frank and honest exchange of dialogue that occurs in a job interview-type setting," said Jonathan Deem, Manchin's general counsel. "But the disclosure requirements are something that the committee does not do now and that no governors' committee has done."
A 2007 review by The Associated Press found nearly 100 such exceptions to the state's public records and open meetings laws.
The advisory commission would recommend names for all court vacancies except that of county magistrates.
Another House bill passed Wednesday would eventually require college degrees of these non-lawyer judicial officials.
Other court-related bills include one unanimously passed by the Senate on Tuesday that would separate Supreme Court races when more than one seat is on that year's ballot. The House Judiciary Committee, meanwhile, on Tuesday endorsed Manchin's bill offering public funds to candidates for the court's two seats up in 2012. That bill advanced to House Finance.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- From revamping Supreme Court elections to raising the bar for county magistrates, West Virginia lawmakers are advancing a number of proposals this session to change the state's judicial branch.
The House of Delegates unanimously passed one bill Wednesday that would allow for special courts in the state's larger judicial circuits to handle complicated business disputes.
Speaker Richard Thompson has championed the concept as attractive to employers.
"In the 15 states that have business courts, there has been a very positive response from the business community," the Wayne County Democrat said in a statement. "Such business courts are best suited for complex commercial cases, which can then be better managed and mediated."
A study of the state's judiciary commissioned by Gov. Joe Manchin had touted possible benefits from such courts, while recommending further review in its November report.
That report also proposed creating a committee to recommend appointees whenever the governor must fill an open court seat. The House voted 90-8 to create an eight-member Judicial Vacancy Advisory Commission, making permanent an informal practice by Manchin and some of his recent predecessors.
Proposed by the governor, that bill now goes to the Senate. It would disclose both applications and letters of recommendations received by the commission, as well as its list of two to five candidates deemed best qualified and any accompanying report. The commission would also hold at least one public meeting while dealing with each vacancy.
But the bill would otherwise exempt all other records from the Freedom of Information Act, and hold its other meetings behind closed doors.
"That provision is meant to protect the frank and honest exchange of dialogue that occurs in a job interview-type setting," said Jonathan Deem, Manchin's general counsel. "But the disclosure requirements are something that the committee does not do now and that no governors' committee has done."
A 2007 review by The Associated Press found nearly 100 such exceptions to the state's public records and open meetings laws.
The advisory commission would recommend names for all court vacancies except that of county magistrates.
Another House bill passed Wednesday would eventually require college degrees of these non-lawyer judicial officials.
Other court-related bills include one unanimously passed by the Senate on Tuesday that would separate Supreme Court races when more than one seat is on that year's ballot. The House Judiciary Committee, meanwhile, on Tuesday endorsed Manchin's bill offering public funds to candidates for the court's two seats up in 2012. That bill advanced to House Finance.
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