Judicial Selection
Merit Selection:
Promoting Quality and Fairness
In
1962, Iowa
voters approved a constitutional reform that replaced the process of selecting
judges by popular vote with a merit selection and retention election process. This reform, referred to as the "Missouri
Plan," promotes selection of the best qualified applicants and ensures that Iowa has fair and
impartial judges who are accountable to the public.
The
merit selection system involves a nonpartisan commission that reviews the qualifications
of applicants for judicial office. Applicants
provide the commission with extensive information about their education,
professional career, and qualifications.
In addition, the commission conducts interviews of all candidates. Once the commission screens and interviews applicants,
it forwards a slate of nominees to the governor who makes the final appointment.
Merit
selection focuses on the professional qualifications of applicants—experience,
legal skills and knowledge, and judicial temperament. More importantly, by eliminating the need for
judicial candidates to finance political campaigns—which usually involve
accepting substantial sums of money from well-heeled special interest groups
seeking favorable court decisions—merit selection promotes an independent and
impartial judiciary
How Citizens Play a
Key Role
While
Iowans no longer select judges by popular election, they continue to play a fundamental
role in deciding who serves on the judiciary.
Iowans:
- May serve on
judicial nominating commissions.
- Suggest the name
of an applicant to be considered for a judgeship.
- Provide a
nominating commission with comments about individual applicants for the
bench.
- Vote whether or
not to keep a judge in office for another term.
If
you would like to serve on a judicial nominating commission, contact the
governor's office. If you would like to
serve on a magistrate nominating commission, contact the county board of
supervisors.
When
a vacancy in a judicial office occurs, the appropriate commission will announce
the start of a nominating process, including an address for sending
information, nominations, and applications.
This information can be found on this site and it is also published by
most newspapers in the state.
Eligibility for Judicial
Office
In
general, nominees for any judgeship except for judicial magistrates must be
lawyers admitted to practice law in Iowa. Also, a nominee must be a resident of the
state, district, or county to which they are nominated and must be of an age such
that they can serve a full term of office before reaching age 72.
Although
the merit selection system governs the selection of all judges and magistrates,
specific procedures vary somewhat depending on the type of judgeship.
State Nominating
Commission
The
State Judicial Nominating Commission interviews applicants and selects nominees
for appointment to the Iowa Supreme Court as well as the Iowa Court of Appeals. This commission is composed of a chair, eight
commissioners elected by lawyers, and eight commissioners appointed by the
governor and confirmed by the Iowa Senate.
The chair is the senior justice of the Iowa Supreme Court, other than
the chief justice. All commissioners,
but the chair, serve for a term of six years.
Within
sixty days of receiving the notice from the secretary of state, the commission
must submit the names of nominees to the governor. The commission selects three
nominees for appointment to the Supreme Court, and three nominees for
appointment to the Court of Appeals.
District Nominating Commissions
District
judicial nominating commissions are responsible for screening applicants and
selecting nominees for district court judgeships. There is a nominating commission for each of
Iowa's fourteen judicial election subdistricts. Each district commission has eleven members,
including a chair, who is the most senior district court judge in the district,
five members elected by lawyers, and five members appointed by the
governor. Each commissioner, except the
chair, serves a six-year term. The
district nominating provides the governor with a slate of two nominees from
which to make an appointment to the district court.
County Magistrate Appointing Commissions
Each
county has a magistrate appointing commission to assist with the selection of
district associate judges, associate juvenile or probate judges, and
magistrates. Each magistrate nominating commission
is composed of the following members: a
district court judge who serves as chair and who is designated by the chief
judge of the judicial district, up to three non-lawyer members appointed by the
board of supervisors, and up to two attorneys elected by the attorneys in the
county. The board of supervisors may not
appoint an active law enforcement officer as a commissioner. A county attorney may not serve on the
commission. Commissioners, except for
the district court judge, serve six-year terms.
District
associate judges, associate juvenile judges, and associate probate judges are
appointed by the district judges of the judicial election district from
nominees submitted by the magistrate appointing commission.
Magistrates
are appointed by the magistrate appointing commission.