ii. is a party;
iii. is acting as a lawyer or spokesperson in the proceeding;
iv. is known by the Judge to have a direct interest that could be affected substantially
by the outcome of the proceeding;
v. to the judge’s knowledge is likely to be a material witness to the proceeding.
(2) A judge shall not be disqualified to act in any proceeding because they are a member of the
Spokane Tribe of Indians and the Tribe is a party to the proceeding.
(3) The Judge shall enter an Order of disqualification, and the Court shall enter an order
transferring and removing the cause to another Judge.
(b) Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following words or phrases shall have the
meanings indicated:
(1) “Proceeding” includes pretrial, trial, appellate review, or other stages of litigation;
(2) “Direct interest” means a direct, absolute interest and does not include any per capita,
fractional, proprietary, or equitable interest arising from a person’s membership in an Indian
tribe;
(3) “Timely” means before the Judge makes a discretionary ruling in a matter, and before trial is
commenced, unless a motion and affidavit alleges a particular incident, conversation, or
utterance by the Judge that was not known to the party before a discretionary ruling is
issued or trial commenced.
(4) “Tribe” means the Spokane Tribe of Indians.
(c) Affidavit of Prejudice. When a party believes that the Judge assigned to the proceeding would
be disqualified under grounds set forth in this section that party, in good faith, may request the
Judge to withdraw.
(1) The party seeking the disqualification shall file with the Judge a timely petition for
disqualification and a supporting affidavit setting out in detail the facts alleged to constitute
the grounds for disqualification.
(2) At the discretion of the Court, an opposing party may be permitted to respond to the
allegations in the affidavit.
(3) The Judge shall issue a written ruling on the matter.
(4) Only 1 such motion and affidavit shall be filed on behalf of the same party in a case, and the
motion and affidavit shall be made as to only 1 of the Judges of the Court.
(5) If a Judge rules against disqualification, the Judge shall place all matters relating to such
claims of disqualification into the record.
(6) A party who believes that they are aggrieved by a disqualification decision of the trial court
Judge may not seek interlocutory review, but may raise the issue on appeal upon conclusion
of the case.
(d) The provisions of disqualification and affidavit of prejudice shall not be applicable to the Spokane
Tribal Appellate Court.
Legislative History-Amended 06/30/97, Resolu. 97-359; revised 07/27/06, Resolu. 2006-512; Readopted 08/01/06, Resolu. 2006-524;
Amended 12/18/06, Resolu. 2007-105
1-3.06 Visiting Judges. In the event that a Judge or Judges are disqualified, and the Court does not have a
trial judge or a sufficient number of Judges to hear a case on appeal, the Chief Judge of the Spokane Tribe
shall appoint a visiting Judge or Judges.
(a) The Chief Judge shall choose such Judge or Judges by contacting the Judges listed on the
visiting Judge list.
(b) This list shall be compiled by the Chief Judge, in consultation with the Tribal Council, and
updated annually.
(c) The list shall contain the names of those qualified to sit on the bench of the Spokane Tribal
Court, and shall consist of those that are Judges for other Tribes and those attorneys from the
private sector that are qualified to act as judges pro tem.
(d) The Tribal Council, in consultation with the Chief Judge, shall annually set the amount of
compensation payable to the visiting Judges.
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Revised Spokane Law & Order Code, 5/14/2013