Chief Judge

Closing Date: 4th December, 2023

Description:

Benefits for this position include: 11 Paid Holidays, Medical, Dental, Vision, Paid Time Off, Pension Plan, Professional Development Opportunities, and much more.

Special Conditions: The Municipal Court Chief Judge is on call twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week and holidays. The main office for this position is located at the A.D. Marshall Public Safety & Courts Building, 1000 Throckmorton, Fort Worth, TX 76102, and the Fort Worth Detention facility at 350 W. Belknap.

The City of Fort Worth is one of the fastest growing large cities in the U.S. Our employees serve the needs of nearly 1,000,000 residents, promoting our values of exceptional customer experience, mutual respect, embracing our diversity, continuous improvement, ethical behavior, and accountability.

The Chief Judge position provides an exceptional opportunity to work in a large, high volume Municipal Court responsible for administering justice to the citizens of Fort Worth on fine only misdemeanors. The incumbent will work directly with the Court Director and administrative staff to develop business processes to ensure that high quality, responsive, efficient and effective judicial court methods and procedures are implemented. The incumbent will have the ability to lead a group of highly trained judges and work with dedicated and skilled support staff in a Court with state-of-the-art technological equipment and case management system.

Minimum Qualifications:

• A Juris Doctor degree from an accredited college or university
• Eight (8) years of increasingly responsible experience as a practicing attorney, including four (4) years of supervisory or administrative responsibility.
• Possession of, or ability to obtain, valid license as an attorney issued by the State Bar of Texas.
• The judge must maintain residence in Fort Worth during the tenure of office and must be a resident of Fort Worth at the time of appointment.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supervising other judges.

• Maintaining administrative oversight of the municipal judges; establishing work rules for the judicial administration of the municipal courts, including establishing rules for maintaining uniformity in procedures in municipal court.
• Establishing work hours for each municipal judge; calling periodic meetings of all municipal court judges and substitute judges to review court procedures; assigning the duties and schedules of each municipal judge.
• Reviewing and investigating judicial complaints; conducting performance evaluations of municipal judges.
• Serving as the judicial liaison to the City Council and City departments.
• Reviews probable cause affidavits and arrest warrants, sets bonds, magistrates' adults and juveniles, reviews and issues arrest and search warrants, and presides over jury and non-jury trial dockets.
• As an appointed official, the Chief Judge reports directly to the Mayor and City Council, and has extensive latitude in using independent judgment in the execution of his/her duties.

Working Conditions:
The Municipal Court Chief Judge is selected and appointed or reappointed by the City Council for a term of two (2) years, commencing April 1st of even-numbered years.

Applicants for this position must pass a Criminal Justice Information Systems (CJIS) fingerprint-based background check and maintain CJIS eligibility. Due to CJIS requirements related to system access, the following will result in being disqualified for this position: Felony Convictions, Felony Deferred Adjudication, Class A Misdemeanor Conviction, Class B Misdemeanor Convictions in the last 10 years, Class A Misdemeanor Deferred Adjudication, Class B Misdemeanor Deferred Adjudication in the last 10 years, an Open Arrest for Any Criminal Offense (Felony or Misdemeanor), and ALL Family Violence Convictions regardless of class.

Conditions of Employment:
The City of Fort Worth is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. It is the policy and practice of the City to recruit, hire, train and promote a diverse workforce without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, parental status, military service, or another non-merit factor.

The City of Fort Worth is committed to full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to participate in the job application or interview process and to perform essential job functions.

Candidates who do not meet the Education requirement, may be considered if they have more relevant work experience than the position requires. Those selected for employment will be required to pass Pre-Employment checks depending on the position requirements. Those could include, but are not limited to: criminal background check, drug screen, education verification, etc. criminal convictions will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Employees are paid by direct deposit only.

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