What is a court commissioner?
The term "Commissioner" seems to be one that many have questions about. Simply defined a court commissioner is an individual appointed by a judge, with the approval of the Minnesota Supreme Court, to assist with the administration of a portion of the work of the court system. Commissioners have a specific area or areas of expertise and/or experience, and are viewed by the court system as experts in the areas in which they are appointed to serve. As such, those who appear in front of commissioners can expect that they will hear from the court in terms of the commissioner’s thoughts regarding the claim presented. Those who represent themselves should know that the commissioners do not have the same authority as judges , but work as authorities in terms of the "entry level" of the judicial position. So while in many cases their recommendations and rulings are upheld by the assigned judge, their holding over a matter can be overcome. And though not always the case, if an assigned judge feels that the recommendation of the commissioner is not accurate, the assigned judge may very well take the matter away to rule independently, instead of essentially deferring to the opinion of the commissioner.
The role of a court commissioner
Typically, a court commissioner’s most common duties and responsibilities include handling most motions in family law matters, pretrial matters in criminal matters, settlement conferences, bond hearings, habeas corpus matters, and other ancillary family law issues.
For family law matters, hearings usually include such motions as bifurcation of marital status (which provides for the entry of a dissolution decree prior to the entry of a dissolution judgment), child custody evaluations, property and spousal support, restraining and protective orders, and attorney fees. A court commissioner has authority to issue contempt orders, order continuances, grant and revoke orders of protection, and find parties in contempt of court with authority to impose appropriate sanctions.
A court commissioner oversees criminal arraignments, change of plea hearings, bail and own recognizance release hearings, probation violation hearings, pretrial conferences and motions to suppress evidence or evidence obtained through the exclusionary rule. In a majority of cases heard by commissioners, a commissioner issues recommendations to a district judge that are adopted as the order of the court unless they are appealed within the specific time period to the district judge for the district in which the case is venued.
A court commissioner is not a deputy district judge. A deputy district judge does not preside over a court but is available to assist a district judge when needed. Therefore, a court commissioner is a part of the court system with a specific court assignment and presides over cases from the bench.
Credentials and appointment
Commissioners must be attorneys who have been admitted to practice law in the State of New York for at least five years. The chief administrator of the courts cannot appoint someone who is not an attorney or has not been admitted to practice law in New York for at least five years.
The individuals with ultimate authority to appoint court commissioners are the Presiding Justices of the Appellate Division, in consultation with the chief administrative judge. Each trial level Supreme Court Justice may then appoint court commissioners to assist with his/her work, based on the recommendations of the Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division.
Judge vs. commissioner
In the state court system in Washington, the role of a court commissioner and judge are distinct. When obtaining a final decision from the court, it is important to understand what the differences are in terms of authority of a court commissioner compared to a judge. The law about court commissioners is found in RCW 2.24.050.
The judge is required to make all decisions in all cases. A commissioner’s authority as a judicial officer, however, varies depending upon the case to which the commissioner is assigned. As discussed in a prior article, for example, commissioners in King County Superior Court handling the initial hearing of a family law matter have the same authority as a judge, whereas a commissioner handling the next step of a family law case does not have quite the same authority as a judge. A commissioner is not permitted, for example, to make a final authority on an issue- this is limited to a judge.
The scope of the authority of a commissioner is limited to handling cases, issues or matters referred to them. In limited and pre-determined types of proceedings such as initial hearings or motions, and only if granted by the written order of the presiding judge, a commissioner may act for a judge . The authority of a commissioner includes conducting preliminary hearings, deciding custody evals or parenting disputes, if given permission of the presiding judge. Specifics about the authority are provided in GR 29(c).
It is critical to request a review hearing on a commissioner’s ruling immediately. In most family law cases, the case will remain with the family law commissioner, unless the parties request to have it reviewed (GR 29) or remanded (CR 53) for a de novo (meaning "from the beginning") hearing in front of a superior court judge. If the issue has already been heard by a commissioner, it is important to promptly file a motion for reconsideration and/or for a de novo hearing in front of a judge. The de novo hearing allows a specific request for a different judge, if there have been issues with the current judge.
Many issues require a de novo hearing- in other words, a "do-over" in front of a different judge. The king county local rules require any requests for a different judge be made at the de novo request. It is typically at this time after that a party will be assigned a different judge for review of a commissioner’s ruling.
Importance in the court system
Commissioners serve an important function within our judicial system, and allow the court to function more efficiently. Why? Because the amount of judicial resources needed to get through the "routine" work of a case far exceeds the manpower available. Even in family law cases, where the court assumes that the parties are at least somewhat "ready to go", issues come up that require a special set of skills. While the general competency of judges in this area is important, it is an inescapable fact that there are not enough judges to take care of the work that judges, referees and commissioners must do.
Though Commissioner decisions can be reviewed by a judge, they can often be reviewed by another Commissioner. A whole body of jurisprudence governs appeals to the Superior Court from Commissioner orders. This process is valuable to provide continuing monitoring and oversight over the work of Commissioners. The party appealing the decision is responsible for the costs of preparing and transmitting the record to the reviewing Commissioner, and pays a fee for the review. The reviewing Commissioner is not required to hear oral argument on the appeal. The appeal generally is an "on paper" exercise. Extensive additional briefing is disfavored and the review is strictly limited to the evidence submitted to the Commissioner whose rulings and orders are under review.
Commissioners can, and do, have special qualifications which provide them with specific expertise in court proceedings. In those cases, parties may not even need to go to trial in order to resolve a matter. The presence of a Commissioner may allow for settlement between the parties. In some cases, Commissioners may have expertise relating to a specific type of motion or proceeding. For example, a Commissioner may be selected to hear child support motions or restraining order matters, based on his or her background and experience in family law.
Examples of cases resolved by a commissioner
There are numerous examples of issues that have been handled by a Commissioner. For instance, Commissioners oftentimes rule on issues surrounding the division of property in a divorce, as well as the possession and access to children after divorce. As another example, Commissioners can handle cases involving requests for temporary spousal support.
Commissioners also hear cases involving the disposition of small claims and may include pre-judgment debt claims or eviction cases. Small claims include monetary amounts of $10,000 or less. There are strict guidelines surrounding an action in small claims court, including the amount of fees owed to the court as well as process requirements . One benefit of small claims is that either party has the ability to appeal, yet it is uncommon for an appellate court to issue a reversal in favor of either party to a small claims suit.
Various types of family matters can involve a Commissioner in conjunction with a Judge. Commissioner dates may be known as screening conferences or RMC dates. These dates can take place in different locations or may be in front of the Judge. In some cases, Commissioners are assigned by the Judges to handle motions, whereas other cases commissioner assignments can be random. Ultimately, each court is unique in its approach to assignments and the type of conference system in place.
