Opinion ID: 2540813
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Constitutionality of Appointment

Text: We first consider the constitutionality of the appointment by Chief Senior Status Judge Lambert of Judge Payne to preside over the Madison Circuit Court docket, including the present case. We begin by taking judicial notice that on June 27, 2008, Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice John Minton entered an order stating as follows: Pursuant to Section 110(5)(b) of the Constitution of Kentucky, and in accord with the orders adopting the Guidelines for the Senior Status Program for Special Judges and the Regional Administration Program Charter, the Honorable Joseph E. Lambert, retired Chief Justice of Kentucky and currently a Senior Status Judge, is hereby appointed as Chief Senior Status Judge for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The duties and responsibilities of the Chief Senior Status Judge shall include assisting the Chief Justice with the administration and oversight of the Senior Status Program. The Chief Senior Status Judge shall be the designee of the Chief Justice with authority to assign Senior Status Judges or Retired Judges to sit in any court of the Commonwealth except the Supreme Court, and shall be subject to the supervision and complete control of the Chief Justice. This Order shall be effective upon entry, and until further Order. (emphasis added). By its plain terms, the Chief Justice's delegation of authority to Chief Senior Status Judge Lambert was broad, and included the authority to assign Senior Status Judges or Retired Judges to sit in any court of the Commonwealth except the Supreme Court. Accordingly, Judge Lambert's appointment of Judge Payne to preside over this case fell within the authority granted to him in the Chief Justice's commission appointing him to the office. The question is then narrowed to whether the Chief Justice had the authority to delegate his power to appoint Special Judges to sit and preside over cases in the lower courts of the Commonwealth. Kentucky Constitution Section 110(5)(b) gives the Chief Justice the power to delegate this authority. This constitutional provision provides, in relevant part, as follows: (b) The Chief Justice of the Commonwealth shall be the executive head of the Court of Justice and he shall appoint such administrative assistants as he deems necessary. He shall assign temporarily any justice or judge of the Commonwealth, active or retired, to sit in any court other than the Supreme Court when he deems such assignment necessary for the prompt disposition of causes. Id. (emphasis added); see also KRS 26A.020(1). Thus, while the section vests the Chief Justice with the constitutional authority to make appointments of special judges to sit in the lower courts, it also grants him the authority to appoint such administrative assistants as he deems necessary to carry out the functions of his office. The Chief Justice's appointment of a Chief Senior Status Judge as an administrative assistant to assist in the administration of the Senior Status Judge Program, including the appointments of Senior Judges to particular courts or cases, fits comfortably within this constitutional provision. For this reason, we hold that the Chief Justice properly delegated his appointive authority as it relates to the Senior Status Judge Program to Judge Lambert, and Judge Lambert, in turn, properly exercised his authority in appointing Judge Payne to preside over the Madison Circuit Court docket, including the present case.