Indiana Supreme Court seeks advice about senior judge program

October 1, 2011

Indiana: The Indiana Supreme Court is seeking comments from the public, lawyers and judges regarding proposed changes to the state's senior judge program. Indiana currently has 92 senior judges, who are semi-retired but continue to serve on the courts as-needed.

Proposed changes to the program include: clarifying the jurisdiction of senior judges, providing information about various senior judges' areas of expertise to current trial judges and finding ways to make the use of senior judges more efficient and effective. The court may also allow senior judges to serve in any court, as opposed to the current practice where the Supreme Court appoints senior judges to specific courts. The number of senior judge days used by each court may also increase. Currently, the maximum number of days that each court may use a senior judge is 10 per year, though there are exceptions for busier courts.

A full list of possible changes is available at http://www.in.gov/judiciary/sj-program.html (dead link). Comments by mail or email will be accepted by the Supreme Court through December 1, 2011.