Section 27 - Kentucky Court of Justice Specialty Courts Certification Board(1)Statement of Purpose and Scope. The Certification Board shall: (a) Establish and oversee all aspects of the specialty courts certification process as set forth in Section 28 of these rules, including but not limited to, the establishment of certification requirements and criteria consistent with the Best Practice Standards, submission of certification requests or applications and timeframes for courts that require an improvement plan;(b) Conduct an annual review of these rules, the Court of Justice Rules of Administrative Procedure, AP Part XIII, Procedures for Specialty Courts, and recommend any necessary updates or revisions to the Supreme Court;(c) Assess certification observation procedures, processes, and forms developed and implemented by AOC Specialty Courts;(d) Establish a communication plan for the specialty courts certification process with local court jurisdictions, the court system, and if appropriate, the public;(e) Define timelines for the ongoing assessment and review procedures for certified specialty courts;(f) Submit local jurisdiction certification recommendations to the Chief Justice for final approval; (g) Provide to the Chief Justice a list of those jurisdictions that are on improvement plans, as well as the timelines for future certification review and consideration; and(h) Other matters as directed by the Chief Justice.(2)Certification Board Members. The eleven (11) member Kentucky Court of Justice Specialty Courts Certification Board shall be appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and shall serve up to a 3-year term. Members may be reappointed by the Chief Justice to the Certification Board for one additional 3-year term. The Certification Board will consist of nine (9) members of the Judiciary, one (1) Circuit Court Clerk, and the AOC Director or designee. The nine (9) members of the Judiciary shall consist of the following:
(a) Three (3) current drug court judges (at least one (1) from circuit court and one (1) from district court);(b) One (1) current veterans treatment court judge;(c) One (1) current mental health court judge;(d) One (1) current family recovery court judge;(e) One (1) current juvenile recovery court judge;(f) One (1) retired judge with experience presiding over a specialty court; and (g) One (1) "at large" judge (from circuit, district or family courts).(3)Designation of a Certification Board Chair and Vice-Chair. The Chief Justice will select one (1) board member to serve as the Certification Board Chair and one (1) additional board member to serve as the Certification Board Vice-Chair. The Chair or Vice-Chair may be responsible for setting the agenda, calling the meeting to order and adjourning the meeting, and designating the date, time, and location of meetings.(4)Quorum. Six (6) board members shall constitute a quorum in order to transact business. All determinations shall be made by a majority of board members in attendance. Board members may attend meetings via in-person, video, or telephone conference. Board members shall recuse from any business before the Certification Board involving a specialty court over which they preside.(5)Records. Pursuant to KRS 26A.200, all records received, generated, kept, or maintained by or on behalf of the Certification Board shall be the property of the KCOJ and are subject to the control of the Supreme Court of Kentucky. All records created for or generated by the Certification Board shall not be considered Administrative Records of the AOC as defined by AP Part XVII.(6)Staff Support. The AOC will provide staff support to the Certification Board.Ky. Admin. P. Ct. Justice. 27
Adopted by Order 2022-50, eff. 3/1/2023.