Iowa Code § 602.6201 — IA Code / Title XV / Chapter 602 / Section 602.6201
Office of district judge — apportionment.
Status: in_force

(1) District judges shall be nominated and appointed and shall stand for retention in office as provided in chapter 46. District judges shall qualify for office as provided in chapter 63.

(2) A district judge must be a resident of the judicial election district or a resident of a county contiguous with the judicial election district in which appointed before assuming office and during the entire term of office. Subject to the provision for reassignment of judges under section 602.6108, a district judge shall serve in the district of the judge’s appointment while in office, regardless of the number of judgeships to which the district is entitled under the formula prescribed by the supreme court in subsection 3.

(3) The supreme court shall prescribe, subject to the restrictions of this section, a formula to determine the number of district judges who will serve in each judicial election district. The formula shall be based upon a model that measures and applies an estimated case-related workload formula of judicial officers, and shall account for administrative duties, travel time, and other judicial duties not related to a specific case.

(4) For purposes of this section, a vacancy means the death, resignation, retirement, or removal of a district judge, or the failure of a district judge to be retained in office at the judicial election, or an increase in judgeships under the formula prescribed in subsection 3.

(5) In those judicial election districts having more district judges than the number of judgeships specified by the formula prescribed in subsection 3, vacancies shall not be filled.

(6) In those judicial election districts having fewer or the same number of district judges as the number of judgeships specified by the formula prescribed in subsection 3, vacancies in the number of district judges shall be filled as they occur.

(7) In those judicial districts that contain more than one judicial election district, a vacancy in a judicial election district shall not be filled if the total number of district judges in all judicial election districts within the judicial district equals or exceeds the aggregate number of judgeships to which all of the judicial election districts of the judicial district are authorized by the formula in subsection 3.

(8) An incumbent district judge shall not be removed from office because of a reduction in the number of authorized judgeships specified by the formula prescribed in subsection 3.

(9) During February of each year, and at other times as appropriate, the state court administrator shall make the determinations specified by the formula prescribed in subsection 3, and shall notify the appropriate nominating commissions and the governor of appointments that are required.

(10) Notwithstanding the formula for determining the number of district judges prescribed in subsection 3, the number of district judges shall not exceed one hundred sixteen during the period commencing July 1, 1999.

83 Acts, ch 186, §7201, 10201; 86 Acts, ch 1012, §1; 86 Acts, ch 1148, §1, 2; 90 Acts, ch 1055, §1, 2; 95 Acts, ch 207, §25; 96 Acts, ch 1216, §30; 97 Acts, ch 130, §1; 97 Acts, ch 205, §24; 99 Acts, ch 202, §22; 2003 Acts, ch 151, §38, 39; 2007 Acts, ch 86, §4 – 7; 2022 Acts, ch 1033, §4; 2025 Acts, ch 101, §1