Okla. Stat. tit. 20 § 1

Current through Laws 2024, c. 9.
Rule 1 - Presiding Judges and Chief Judges
A. At least every two years, all district and associate district judges selected for service in courts sitting within a statutorily-designated judicial administrative district shall assemble at a time and place agreed upon by them to select a district judge to serve at their pleasure as Presiding Judge of that judicial administrative district. Okla. Const., art. 7, § 10.
B. In meetings held to select a Presiding Judge three-fourths of the total number of judges qualified to participate shall constitute a quorum. A majority vote of those present shall be sufficient to select a Presiding Judge. The order appointing a Presiding Judge shall be signed by all the judges participating in the selection, and the order shall be filed with the Administrative Director of the Courts.
C. The Chief Justice may declare, for good cause shown, the office of the Presiding Judge to be vacant and direct all district and associate district judges selected for service in courts sitting within the affected judicial administrative district to assemble at a designated time and place for the purpose of selecting a successor. Whenever the office of the Presiding Judge remains vacant or its incumbent is either temporarily absent or disabled, the Chief Justice shall designate one of the district judges of a court sitting within the affected judicial administrative district as Acting Presiding Judge. The Acting Presiding Judge shall hold office until a successor is regularly selected or until the incumbent is able to resume the duties of Presiding Judge.
D. Subject only to the rules, orders, and directives of the Supreme Court or the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Presiding Judge shall have general administrative authority and supervision over all the district courts within the judicial administrative district. The Presiding Judge shall have supervisory authority over:
1. The assignment of pending cases to the judges;
2. The work of the courts;
3. The operation of all courts in the judicial administrative district to assure adherence to statewide court objectives and policies; and
4. Such other duties assigned by the Chief Justice.
E. The Presiding Judge may:
1. Counsel and assist other judges in the performance of their administrative responsibilities;
2. Coordinate and determine the assignment of district court personnel required to be present to perform the necessary work of the courts and require their presence to perform that work in any court in the judicial administrative district;
3. Assign district court personnel to locations within the judicial administrative district as necessary to maintain balanced workloads or to expedite the work of those courts; and
4. Perform such other duties and enter such orders necessary to carry out the purposes of these rules.
F. Except in Oklahoma County and Tulsa County, the Presiding Judge shall appoint a district judge in each district court judicial district within the judicial administrative district to serve as Chief Judge. If a district court judicial district has only one resident district judge, that judge shall serve as Chief Judge of the judicial district. If a district court judicial district has more than one resident district judge, the Presiding Judge shall designate one of them as the Chief Judge of the district courts within the district court judicial district, or the Presiding Judge may, by order, prescribe a rotation for the district judges to serve as the Chief Judge of the judicial district. The Chief Judge shall serve at the pleasure of the Presiding Judge.

Okla. Stat. tit. 20, § 1

Adopted by order of the Supreme Court, 1997 OK 150 , eff. 12/23/1997.