Alaska R. Admin. 44

(a) Uniform Policy. The supreme court shall make and

promulgate rules governing administration of all courts, and

practice and procedure in civil and criminal cases in all courts.

The rules shall be uniform throughout the Alaska Court

System.

(b) Request for Rulemaking. Any person may propose

new rules or changes in present rules to the supreme court.

Each proposal must:

(1) be in writing;

(2) include any language proposed for change;

(3) include the reason for the suggested rule or change;

and

(4) be submitted to the court rules attorney at the

Anchorage Office of the Administrative Director of Courts.

The court rules attorney shall review each proposal. If the

proposal is unclear or in need of further documentation, the

rules attorney shall contact the person submitting the proposal

and seek clarification.

(c) Major or Minor Change. The rules attorney shall

determine whether a proposal is a major or minor rule change.

All proposals for new rules and all proposals affecting

substantial rights of litigants are major. Minor rules changes

are those which are technical in nature.

(d) Minor Change. The rules attorney shall submit a

minor rules change proposal directly to the supreme court

along with a summary of the proposal, any relevant background information, and proposed orders in both plain text and

legislative form. The chief justice shall calendar a review of

the proposal at an appropriate administrative conference.

Following review, the supreme court may adopt or reject the

proposal, refer it to a rules committee for review, or assign it to

the rules attorney for further research or review.

(e) Major Change. The rules attorney shall refer major

rules change proposals to the appropriate rules committee. The

committee shall review the proposal, determine if a draft

should be circulated to the bar or other interested persons for

comment, and determine whether to support or oppose the

change. If no circulation was made, the reason for this decision

shall be conveyed to the supreme court when the rules proposal

is referred to the court for consideration. The rules attorney

shall prepare a summary of the proposal, the committee’s

recommendation, any other relevant background information,

and proposed orders in both plain text and legislative form for

the court’s consideration. The chief justice shall calendar a

review of proposals that a rules committee recommends at an

appropriate administrative conference. Following review, the

supreme court may adopt or reject the proposal in whole or in

part, refer the proposal to the same or a different committee for

further study, direct circulation for comment, or assign the

proposal to the rules attorney for further research or review.

(f) Public Information. The following material in rule

change files is public information and is available for review

by members of the public upon request, unless otherwise

ordered by the court:

(1) original rule change proposals;

(2) materials considered by the rules committees,

including proposal drafts, memoranda submitted to or prepared

by the committee, and correspondence;

(3) meeting minutes;

(4) rules committee summaries circulated to members of

the Alaska Bar Association or other persons for comment, and

any comments received;

(5) referral memoranda presented to the supreme court

by the court rules attorney, along with any supporting materials

and proposed orders; and

(6) final supreme court orders adopted in response to rule

change proposals.

(g) Standing Rules Committees. The chief justice shall

establish standing rules committees to review proposals for

amendments to the Rules of Court, except that the

administrative director shall review proposals to amend the

Administrative Rules. All committees shall receive major rules

change proposals from the rules attorney or the supreme court.

In addition, the rules committees shall carry on a continuous

study of the operation and effect of the rules of procedure and

administration. The rules committees shall periodically

recommend rules changes to the supreme court if the changes

promote: 1) simplicity in procedure; 2) fairness in

administration; 3) the just determination of litigation; and 4)

the elimination of unjustifiable expense and delay.

(h) Appointment. The chief justice shall appoint

members of the judiciary, Alaska Bar Association, and other

qualified persons to serve on the rules committees. Nominees

shall be considered from any source, but solicitation for

nominee recommendations shall also be made to the board of

governors of the state bar association and the statewide court

clerks conference. Where possible, terms of the committee

members will be staggered to preserve committee continuity.

The members of the committees shall serve without

compensation. However, with prior approval, the members

may be reimbursed for per diem and travel expenses incident

to their duties as members of the committees.

(i) Expedited Rule Action. Whenever the supreme

court determines that the immediate promulgation of a

procedural or administrative rule is necessary, the court may

take any action required by the circumstances. The court shall

follow all of the requirements of this rule consistent with

meeting the nature of the particular circumstances.

(j) Effective Date. The effective date for each rule

change order shall be stated in the order. Normally, the

effective date shall be the same as the publisher’s distribution

date, in order to provide adequate notice to those affected by

the rule change. Where this is not practical, the effective date

shall be set as determined by the supreme court. When this

occurs, the supreme court shall determine what additional

notice, if any, shall be provided to those affected by the rule

change. Notice of the adopted rules changes shall be posted on

the court system’s website.