§ 12-137 — Civil case assignment

A. The assignment of a civil case to a superior court judge in a county with a population of more than one million persons must be done by either automated means or a formula that is approved by the supreme court and must be done in a blind manner. In an emergency matter or when a judge who is assigned to a case becomes unavailable, the superior court must assign a judge in a blind manner, except that the superior court may account for judicial availability. The superior court may deviate from a blind assignment protocol to ensure that cases are assigned to appropriate specialty courts for tax, complex, commercial and water rights cases.

B. A judge may not select a case for assignment to the judge. A judge may not refuse to accept an assigned case unless good cause exists or a court rule or ethical consideration requires or allows for refusal.