Title 2, COURTS OF RECORD

This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect July 1, 2005. [ 2005 c 105 s 9.]

There shall be a state office to be known as the administrative office of the courts. The executive officer of the administrative office of the courts is the administrator for the courts, who shall be appointed by and hold office at the pleasure of the supreme court of this state…

(1) The administrator for the courts, with the approval of the chief justice of the supreme court of this state, shall appoint and fix the compensation of such assistants as are necessary to enable performance of the power and duties vested in the administrative office of the cou…

The administrator for the courts shall, under the supervision and direction of the chief justice: (1) Examine the administrative methods and systems employed in the offices of the judges, clerks, stenographers, and employees of the courts and make recommendations, through the chi…

(1)(a) All juvenile courts shall transmit youth-level secure detention data and juvenile diversion agreement data to the administrative office of the courts. (b) Data may either be entered into the statewide management information system for juvenile courts or securely transmitte…

For purposes of this title and Title 3 RCW, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, "single judge court" means a court or judicial district that has only one judge. [ 2022 c 74 s 1.]

(1) The chief justice shall consider all recommendations of the administrator for the assignment of judges, and, in the discretion of the chief justice, direct any judge whose calendar, in the judgment of the chief justice, will permit, to hold court where need therefor exists, t…

The judges and clerks of the courts and all other officers, state and local, shall comply with all requests made by the administrator, after approval by the chief justice, for information and statistical data bearing on the state of the dockets of such courts and such other infor…

The supreme court of this state may provide by rule or special order for the holding in this state of an annual conference of the judges of the courts of record of this state, judges of the courts of limited jurisdiction, and invited members of the bar, for the consideration of m…

For attendance while holding court in another county or district pursuant to the direction of the chief justice, a judge shall be entitled to receive from the county to which he or she is sent reimbursement for subsistence, lodging, and travel expenses in accordance with the rate…

This chapter shall apply to the following courts: The supreme court, the court of appeals, the superior courts; and, when and to the extent so ordered by the supreme court, to the courts of limited jurisdiction of this state, including district courts. [ 1987 c 202 s 108; 1971 c …

Any moneys appropriated for the purposes of this chapter shall be disbursed, upon order of the chief justice, on warrants drawn by the state auditor on the general fund. [ 1957 c 259 s 9.]

The administrator for the courts may assign one or more district judges from other judicial districts to serve as visiting district judges in a judicial district which the administrator determines is experiencing an increase in case filings as the result of enhanced enforcement o…

(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the administrative office of the courts shall develop, deliver, and regularly update training regarding child safety and the risk and danger presented to children and youth by high-potency syntheti…

(1) The administrative office of the courts, in cooperation with appropriate legislative committees and legislative staff, shall establish a procedure for the provision of judicial impact notes on the effect legislative bills will have on the workload and administration of the co…

The administrator for the courts shall, in cooperation with juvenile courts, develop informational materials describing juvenile laws and juvenile court processes and procedures related to such laws, and make such information available to the public. Similar information shall als…

The administrator for the courts shall prepare a report for each school year to be submitted to the legislature no later than December 15th of each year that summarizes the disposition of petitions filed with the juvenile court under RCW 28A.225.030, including the number of conte…

(1) The administrator for the courts shall review the advisability and feasibility of the statewide mandatory use of court-appointed special advocates as described in RCW 26.12.175 to act as guardians ad litem in appropriate cases under Titles 13 and 26 RCW. The review must explo…

The administrator for the courts shall establish a pilot program for the efficient statewide processing of warrants issued by courts of limited jurisdiction. The pilot program shall contain procedures and criteria for courts of limited jurisdiction to enter into agreements with o…

A judge pro tempore may be authorized under RCW 2.06.150 or 2.08.180 whenever a judge of the court of appeals or the superior court serves on a judicial commission, board, or committee established by the legislature or the chief justice of the supreme court. The judge pro tempore…

(1) The administrative office of the courts shall create a handbook explaining the sections of Washington law pertaining to the rights and responsibilities of marital partners to each other and to any children during a marriage and a dissolution of marriage. The handbook may also…

The office of the administrator for the courts is encouraged to conduct performance audits of courts under the authority of the supreme court, in conformity with criteria and methods developed by the board for judicial administration that have been approved by the supreme court. …

(1) Washington state courts are required by chapter 49.60 RCW, the law against discrimination, and by 42 U.S.C. Sec. 12101 et seq., the Americans with disabilities act, to provide equal access to persons with disabilities. To assist the courts to comply with these laws, the admin…

Subject to the availability of funds appropriated therefor, the family and juvenile court improvement grant program is created. (1) The purpose of the program is to assist superior courts in improving their family and juvenile court systems, especially in dependency cases, with t…

(1) A superior court may apply for grants from the family and juvenile court improvement grant program by submitting a local improvement plan with the administrator for the courts. To be eligible for grant funds, a superior court's local improvement plan must meet the criteria de…

(1) The administrative office of the courts shall develop guidelines by December 1, 2011, for all courts to establish a process to reconcile duplicate or conflicting no-contact or protection orders issued by courts in this state. (2) The guidelines developed under subsection (1) …

The administrative office of the courts shall ensure that the information required in RCW 7.105.352 is provided by each court, including through use of consistent court codes, reporting mechanisms, and database entry. [ 2025 c 222 s 2.]

(1) The administrative office of the courts shall: (a) Develop a list of vendors or enter into a contract with a vendor that provides electronic monitoring with victim notification technology. The office shall provide outreach to counties as to how courts may access the vendor or…

(1) Subject to funds appropriated for this specific purpose, by June 1, 2024, the Washington courts' board for judicial administration must develop model standards: (a) Establishing best practices for the operation of electronic monitoring with victim notification technology by m…

For the purposes of this chapter, the terms spouse, marriage, marital, husband, wife, widow, widower, next of kin, and family shall be interpreted as applying equally to state registered domestic partnerships or individuals in state registered domestic partnerships as well as to …

As used in this chapter: (1) The term "certificate procedure" shall mean the procedure authorized herein by which a federal court in disposing of a cause pending before it submits a question of local law to the supreme court for answer; (2) The term "federal court" means any cour…

When in the opinion of any federal court before whom a proceeding is pending, it is necessary to ascertain the local law of this state in order to dispose of such proceeding and the local law has not been clearly determined, such federal court may certify to the supreme court for…

Certificate procedure shall be governed by the following provisions: (1) Certificate procedure may be invoked by a federal court upon its own motion or upon the motion of any interested party in the litigation involved if the federal court grants such motion. (2) Certificate proc…

This act may be cited as the "federal court local law certificate procedure act." [ 1965 c 99 s 4.]

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter. (1) "Admonishment" means a written disposition of an advisory nature that cautions a judge or justice not to engage in certain proscribed behavior. An admonishment may in…

The commission shall consist of eleven members. One member shall be a judge selected by and from the court of appeals judges; one member shall be a judge selected by and from the superior court judges; one member shall be a judge selected by and from the limited jurisdiction cour…

Commission membership shall terminate if a member ceases to hold the position that qualified him or her for appointment. Vacancies caused by disqualification or resignation shall be filled by the appointing authority for the remainder of the term. No person may serve more than tw…

Commission members and alternate members shall be compensated in accordance with RCW 43.03.250 and shall be reimbursed for travel expenses under RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060. [ 1984 c 287 s 8; 1981 c 268 s 5.] Notes: Legislative findings—Severability—Effective date—1984 c 287: See…

The commission may employ personnel, including attorneys, and make any other expenditures necessary for the effective performance of its duties and the exercise of its powers. The commission may hire attorneys or others by personal service contract to conduct initial proceedings …

The commission is authorized to impose the following disciplinary actions, in increasing order of severity: (a) Admonishment; (b) reprimand; or (c) censure. If the conduct of the judge or justice warrants more severe disciplinary action, the commission may recommend to the suprem…

The commission is authorized to investigate and consider for probative value any conduct that may have occurred prior to, on, or after December 4, 1980, by a person who was, or is now, a judge or justice when such conduct relates to a complaint filed with the commission against t…

Each member of the commission, and any special master appointed by the commission, may administer oaths. The commission may summon and examine witnesses and compel the production and examination of papers, books, accounts, documents, records, certificates, and other evidence for …

If a person refuses to obey a subpoena issued by the commission or refuses to answer any proper question during a hearing or proceeding, the superior court of any county in which the hearing or proceeding is conducted or in which the person resides or is found shall have jurisdic…

Members and employees of the commission, including any lawyers or special masters temporarily employed by the commission, are absolutely privileged from suit in any action, civil or criminal, based upon any disciplinary proceedings or upon other official acts as members or employ…

The adjudicative proceedings, judicial review, and civil enforcement provisions of chapter 34.05 RCW, the administrative procedure act, do not apply to any investigations, initial proceedings, public hearings, or executive sessions involving the discipline or retirement of a judg…

If the commission adopts a recommendation that a judge or justice be removed, the judge or justice shall be suspended, with salary, from his or her judicial position upon filing of the recommendation with the supreme court and until a final determination is made by the supreme co…