February 22, 2013 - Oregon State Bar

OREGON STATE BAR
Board of Governors Agenda
Meeting Date: February 22, 2013
From:
David Wade, Chair, Governance and Strategic Planning Committee
Re:
Preference Polls for Circuit Court Appointments
Action Recommended
Approve the Governance and Strategic Planning Committee’s recommendation to
resume conducting preference polls for circuit court appointments.
Background
Pursuant to OSB Bylaw 2.701, the bar conducts preference polls of judicial candidates
for statewide and circuit court elections. Pursuant to Bylaw 2.702, preference polls for circuit
court appointments are conducted only “at the request of the Governor of the State of Oregon
or the Board.”
Since about 2005, neither the Governor nor the board has requested a poll for a circuit
court appointment. Preference polls for appointments were eliminated at the same time that
the BOG stopped ranking its recommendations for appellate court appointments, at the
request of the then-Governor.
In place of preference polls of bar members in the county/judicial district of the vacancy,
the BOG has encouraged local bars to conduct an interview-based screening process similar to
what the board uses for statewide judicial appointments. The Multnomah Bar Association’s
judicial screening process is possibly the oldest most structured of the various county bar
mechanisms. Lane and Washington Counties have similar processes, but many county bars do
nothing formal in regard to the circuit court appointments.
Preference polls are disfavored by some as being nothing more than “popularity
contests.” Proponents counter that many (if not most) bar members take the polls seriously,
making their selections based on their knowledge of the candidates and their assessment of the
candidates’ respective qualifications. Particularly in counties that don’t have a screening
process (or where the county bar’s screening process is perceived to be flawed), a preference
poll can provide valuable information to the Governor and to the public.
Preference polls are relatively easy and inexpensive for the bar to administer
electronically and will not impose a significant burden on staff.