Commission on court rules

BE IT RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 1
STATE OF WASHINGTON, IN LEGISLATIVE SESSION ASSEMBLED:2
THAT, At the next general election to be held in this state the 3
secretary of state shall submit to the qualified voters of the state 4
for their approval and ratification, or rejection, an amendment to 5
Article IV of the Constitution of the state of Washington by adding a 6
new section to read as follows: 7
Article IV, section . . .. INTERBRANCH COMMISSION ON COURT RULES. 8
(1) The supreme court shall have the power to promulgate rules of 9
court to provide necessary governance of court procedure and 10
practice. Court rules may not abridge, enlarge, or modify any 11
substantive right, invade the prerogatives or encroach on the 12
inherent powers of the legislative or executive branch of the 13
government, or otherwise violate the separation of powers among the 14
three coequal branches. 15
(2) There shall be an interbranch commission on court rules, 16
consisting of the following members, all of whom must be an attorney 17
licensed to practice law in this state: 18
(a) Three representatives of the legislative branch: The attorney 19
for the speaker of the house of representatives, the senior 20
leadership counsel for the second largest caucus of the house of 21
H-2724.1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 4211
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representative Davis
Read first time 01/13/26. Referred to Committee on Civil Rights &
Judiciary.
p. 1 HJR 4211
representatives; and one person appointed by the president of the 1
senate and confirmed by a two-thirds vote of the senate;2
(b) Three representatives of the executive branch: One person 3
representing the governor's office, appointed by the governor; one 4
person representing the attorney general's office, appointed by the 5
attorney general; and one person representing local government, 6
appointed by the governor in consultation with organizations 7
representing the interests of cities and counties; and8
(c) Three representatives of the judicial branch: One court of 9
appeals judge selected by a two-thirds vote of the court of appeals 10
judges; one superior court judge selected by a two-thirds vote of the 11
superior court judges; and one limited jurisdiction court judge 12
selected by a two-thirds vote of the limited jurisdiction court 13
judges. 14
(3) Before adopting a court rule, the supreme court shall notify 15
and forward to the interbranch commission on court rules the text of 16
the proposed rule, along with all public comments that are submitted 17
to the supreme court relating to the proposed rule. Within 90 days 18
after receiving notification, the commission shall review the 19
proposed rule and public comments and make a finding, by simple 20
majority vote, as to whether there is sufficient evidence that the 21
proposed rule may abridge, enlarge, or modify any substantive right, 22
invade the prerogatives or encroach on the inherent powers of the 23
legislative or executive branch of the government, or otherwise 24
violate the separation of powers among the three coequal branches.25
(4) If the interbranch commission on court rules finds there is 26
not sufficient evidence that the proposed rule may violate the 27
separation of powers between the three coequal branches, the supreme 28
court may proceed with adopting the proposed rule.29
(5) If the interbranch commission on court rules finds there is 30
sufficient evidence that the proposed rule may violate the separation 31
of powers between the three coequal branches, the supreme court shall 32
appoint five justices pro tempore to hold a public hearing on the 33
proposed rule and to issue a determination on whether the proposed 34
rule abridges, enlarges, or modifies any substantive right, invades 35
the prerogatives or encroaches on the inherent powers of the 36
legislative or executive branches of the government, or otherwise 37
violates the separation of powers among the three coequal branches. 38
If the justices pro tempore so determine, the supreme court may not 39
adopt the proposed rule. 40
p. 2 HJR 4211
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the secretary of state shall cause 1
notice of this constitutional amendment to be published at least four 2
times during the four weeks next preceding the election in every 3
legal newspaper in the state. 4
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p. 3 HJR 4211