Report Title:

Continuing Judicial Education; Mandatory Program

 

Description:

Requires newly appointed and per diem judges who handle family law and domestic abuse cases to undergo education in subjects relevant to issues and problems unique to those cases, subject to the availability of federal or private funds. (HB774 HD2)

 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

774

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2001

H.D. 2

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

RELATING TO COURTS.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that court cases involving family law or domestic abuse require that judges have adequate knowledge of specific procedural law and court rules, and of social, psychological, and economic issues peculiar to these kinds of cases.

The legislature further finds that:

(1) California requires at least thirty hours of judicial training annually regarding family law since more citizens are affected by family law proceedings than any other type of judicial proceedings;

(2) Texas requires new judges to undergo at least eight hours of training on resources for counseling and aid to victims, gender bias in the judicial process, and victims of family violence; and

(3) New Jersey requires judges to participate in a forty-hour judicial education program on domestic violence.

The purpose of this Act is to require the judiciary to provide mandatory training and education of judges who handle family law or domestic violence cases, or both, subject to the availability of federal or private funding authorized for this purpose.

SECTION 2. Chapter 601, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§601-   Family law and domestic violence training. (a) Subject to the availability of federal or private funding, the judiciary shall establish a program of mandatory education and training for judges who hear family court cases or domestic abuse cases, or both, as a prerequisite to hearing those cases. Training shall include the initial education and training of newly appointed and per diem judges to hear those types of cases. No general fund appropriations shall be used for the program.

(b) The education and training under subsection (a) shall include the following subjects:

(1) Family law and procedure;

(2) Domestic violence and victim counseling;

(3) Effects of alcohol and drug abuse on families;

(4) Social issues relevant to chapters 571 and 580, economic issues relevant to chapter 580, and issues that may arise under chapters 572 to 579, and 582 to 588;

(5) Sexual assault; and

(6) Abuse or neglect, or both, including but not limited to children, elderly, disabled, and victim counseling.

(c) The conduct and content of the program under subsection (a) shall be as deemed appropriate by the chief justice; provided that all subjects under subsection (b) are covered."

SECTION 3. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.