Mobile County; temporary judges of probate, appointment amended

More temporary judges for Mobile probate court

Beginning June 1, 2026, the law sets rules for temporary judges in Mobile County’s probate court. When the elected judge is incompetent, incapacitated, absent, sick, or disqualified, that judge or the chief clerk must certify this. The presiding circuit judge must then appoint a temporary judge who knows the law and practices and lives in Mobile County. The elected judge resumes duties upon filing a certificate that they are no longer incompetent, ending the temporary judge’s authority. The elected judge can also appoint temporary judges to serve alongside them for crowded calendars, complex cases, long trials, or caseload management. These appointments last up to 90 days per term and can be renewed, but service cannot exceed 100 days per fiscal year. This appointment power ends when a second authorized probate judge takes office. It also ends at the close of the first regular legislative session after a successor to the judge serving June 14, 2007, is elected or appointed—whichever happens first. Temporary judges have the probate judge’s powers, and their recorded orders carry the same legal force. They must take the state officers’ oath and post a bond of at least $10,000. The presiding circuit judge sets and approves the bond, except that the elected probate judge handles bonds for concurrent appointments. Temporary judges receive 90% of the elected judge’s compensation, with no additional benefits. The elected judge’s salary and benefits remain unchanged. When the probate judge is disqualified from one case, the presiding circuit judge must appoint an impartial special judge who knows the law. That special judge has full authority over the case, needs no bond, and issues decisions subject to review or appeal. An attorney serving as special judge receives $50 per day actually holding court. The elected judge and their bond guarantor are not responsible for temporary or special judges’ acts or decisions. They are also not responsible for temporary judges’ or court staff’s failures to act during a temporary judge’s service. The chief clerk’s existing powers remain unchanged.