NCJ Number
155114
Journal
Judicature Volume: 78 Issue: 5 Dated: (March-April 1995) Pages: 242-246
Date Published
1995
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Kansas provides an ideal situation in which to study the effects of the electoral process on judicial behavior because each district determines its own mechanism for filling its trial bench.
Abstract
To date, 17 of the State's 31 judicial districts have opted for the merit system of selection, while the remaining 14 districts use the constitutionally provided system of partisan elections. This quasi-experimental design compared judicial behavior in the State's four most populous counties, two of which use the merit system and two of which use the electoral system. The variables studied here included pace of litigation, indices of case termination rates, and median case disposition time. However, this analysis of litigation flow in the Kansas trial courts showed little evidence of a difference between districts where judges are chosen by merit and those where judges are chosen by the voters. 4 figures and 22 notes