WY Judicial Branch Committees
Not unlike their legislative and executive counterparts, the WY Judicial branch also has their own committees, commissions and boards that have a direct influence on policies, rules and procedures. From what we can deduce, judges are not required to serve on committees, commissions or boards as their legislative counterparts are, but instead most likely volunteer. Many members on these committees are from the WY State Bar as well as other hand-picked members from various disciplines and bodies.
Another difference that we have found that appears to be unique to the Judicial Branch is that some of these bodies, or changes to them, are created by official court order. For example, here is the Order Establishing the Wyoming Access to Justice Commission, which was filed by and in the Wyoming Supreme Court on Dec 16, 2008.
The greatest difference, and concern, we have found thus far is that most of these bodies do not appear to adhere to WY Public Meetings laws. Committees/commissions/boards meeting info for locations and times are not available at the WY Courts website – sometimes only dates are listed. Meeting materials that would accompany any meeting are also not available. The most recent publicly available past meeting minutes dates back almost a year. So.. a WY Citizen must wait a greater portion of a year to know what these governmental bodies were doing. Transparency, accountability and public participation does not readily appear to be a priority to the Wyoming Judicial Branch in regards to meetings by the bodies listed below. We hope we are wrong.
Below is a list of these committees with a brief description quoted directly from the Wyoming Courts website. We also include a link, if available, to members of that body, as well as if that body publicly announces their meetings and if meeting minutes are posted/accessible.
As time allows we will provide more information for our readers by providing more content to the committee & boards in the list below.
| WY Judicial Branch Committees |
| Access to Justice Commission
The Access to Justice Commission was established by Court order on December 16, 2008. Its mission is to promote fair and equal access to civil justice in Wyoming. Contact Information: Members List |
| Children’s Justice Project Advisory Council
While the Children’s Justice Project is “A Project of the Wyoming Supreme Court” any information for this project or it’s subsequent advisory council has recently been completely removed from the WY Courts website. Search results from WY Courts site provide: *A brief summary with a dead link: *Biennium and Supplemental Budget info, with the most recent accounting being 2015-2016 Biennium Budget. Below is what we saved approximately 3 months ago from a non-governmental outside link (https://www.wyochildrensjustice.org/council): Children’s Justice Project Advisory Council The federal Administration for Children & Families’ Children’s Bureau awards each state a Court Improvement Program (CIP) grant to assess the state’s child welfare system and make recommendations on how to improve the court’s role in achieving stable, permanent homes for children in foster care. Since 1999, the Wyoming Supreme Court’s Children’s Justice Project (CJP) has administered Wyoming’s Court Improvement Project. In October of 1999, the Supreme Court appointed an advisory council consisting of judges, attorneys, DFS representatives, and other professionals involved in the child protection system to oversee the Children’s Justice Project. The Children’s Justice Project is currently overseen by a Grant Coordinator supervised by the advisory council and the Supreme Court. The Children’s Justice Project continues to develop data-driven solutions to improve outcomes for abused and neglect children and their families, improve the timeliness and quality of hearings, enhance the quality of legal representation, and provide systemwide resources and training. Contact Information: Members List More: |
| Commission on Judicial Conduct and Ethics
The commission provides a means of discipline in the form of censure, suspension, removal, retirement or other discipline of justices of the Wyoming Supreme Court, district court judges and commissioners, circuit court judges and magistrates, municipal court judges, and other judicial officers. The commission is a constitutional entity (Article 5, Section 6, Wyoming Constitution) and consists of twelve members who reside in the state of Wyoming: two district court judges and one circuit court judge elected by their respective conference; three members of the Wyoming State Bar appointed by its governing body; and, six electors of the state who are not active or retired judges or attorneys. The six electors are appointed by the governor with confirmation by the senate. Terms are set for three years and staggered in a manner prescribed by law. Contact Information: (Also links to an address outside of WY Courts: https://judicialconduct.wyo.gov/) Members List: Yes, posted on page. |
| Court Security Commission
The Wyoming Court Security Commission establishes the standards to protect life, property and the judicial process in the Wyoming court system. In establishing the standards, the commission recommends proper levels of court security to each county with due consideration of each county’s size, use of court facilities and security risks. The commission was created to be under the supervision of the Wyoming Supreme Court (W.S. Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 5-11-101). It is composed of the Director of the Office of Homeland Security or his designee and nine additional members for a term of three years, who may be reappointed to serve subsequent terms. Contact Information: Members List |
| Equal Justice Wyoming
Operated through the Wyoming Supreme Court, Equal Justice Wyoming exists to promote access to justice throughout the State of Wyoming in accordance with the directives of the Wyoming Civil Legal Services Act. Board members appointed by the Supreme Court act to ensure that statutory priorities and objectives of the Act are fully and faithfully executed. Contact Information: Members List |
| Judicial Education Committee
The Judicial Education Committee identifies and develops educational opportunities for Wyoming’s judiciary. The purpose of the committee is to help develop and implement an education program that focuses on continuous and career-long development of justices and judges. Contact Information: Lisa Finkey Members List – Yes, posted on page. |
| Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee (JEAC)
Upon the recommendation of the Board of Judicial Policy and Administration, the Wyoming Supreme Court signed an order dated April 1, 2010, establishing the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee. The committee was established to provide guidance to judges, as defined in the Wyoming Code of Judicial Conduct, concerning compliance with the Wyoming Code of Judicial Conduct. The committee is composed of three judges, retired judges, or retired justices, and two members of the Wyoming State Bar. Of the judicial members, at least one shall be a district judge and at least one shall be a circuit court judge. No currently serving justice shall be a member of the committee. Contact Information: Members List – Yes, posted on page. |
| Judicial Nominating Commission
Article 5, Section 4 (c) – (e) of the Wyoming Constitution establishes a Judicial Nominating Commission tasked with nominating three qualified applicants for each Supreme Court justice, district judge, or circuit judge vacancy. Three members of the Commission are selected by the Governor, and three attorneys engaged in the practice of law are elected by the Wyoming State Bar. The Chief Justice serves as chairman of the Commission, but is authorized to vote only in the event of a tie. Those interested in a judicial position must submit an extensive Expression of Interest and a writing sample, and must submit three names of judges and three of attorneys who will provide a candid appraisal of their potential as jurists, as well as two personal references. The Commission reviews all of those materials and interviews suitable candidates. The Commission views its task as providing the Governor with a difficult decision by nominating the three best persons expressing interest in each position. The Governor must select the judicial officer from the list of three certified by the Commission. Contact Information: Members List – Yes, posted on page. |
| Permanent Rules Advisory Committee
The purpose of this committee is to propose and enact rules pertaining to trial courts in both criminal and civil matters. The Wyoming Supreme Court, under authority of Wyoming Statute § 5-2-117, appoints the members of the six divisions of the committee. The Appellate, Civil, Criminal, Evidence, and Juvenile division members hold 2-year terms; the Court Records division members hold 3-year terms. Members List – Yes, posted on page. |
| Uniform Bail & Forfeiture Committee
The committee was informally created by the Wyoming Supreme Court to perform an annual review of the Uniform Bail and Forfeiture Schedule and recommend changes to the Wyoming Supreme Court per the enactment of new legislation and suggestions of law enforcement agencies and judicial officers. Each law enforcement agency designates its own member to this committee. Contact Information: Members List – Yes, posted on page. |
| Wyoming Judicial Council (Previously called the Board of Judicial Policy & Administration, BJPA)The Wyoming Judicial Council sets policies and rules for the Judiciary, exercises administrative supervision over the courts in the state, and promulgates rules of practice and procedure for all courts.Subcommittees: Judicial Education Committee The Wyoming Judicial Council is the governing body of the Wyoming Judicial Branch. It sets policies for the Judiciary, exercises administrative supervision over the courts in the state, and promulgates rules of practice and procedure for all courts. Formerly known as the Board of Judicial Policy and Administration (BJPA), the Wyoming Judicial Council changed its name to more clearly express the entity’s role. The Order modifying the name of the Wyoming Judicial Branch’s governing body can be accessed here. Members List |
