U.S. District of N. California provides bar members confidential way to express concerns about Judges

The US District Court for the Northern District of California established an Ombudsperson Program in mid-2014. The program provides members of the bar with a confidential way to communicate concerns and feedback about individual judges.

Highly-respected retired judges Hon. Fern M. Smith and Hon. James Kleinberg serve as volunteer ombudspersons. The program is best suited to address sensitive issues that can be considered informally, where a formal misconduct complaint is not warranted. Examples are a judge's court procedures, temperament, disability or delay. An attorney's report will be confidential, unless the attorney and the ombudsperson agree that it should be communicated. The program does not substitute for other, formal complaint procedures, nor will it address the merits of a judicial ruling.

Chief Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton praises the program: "In the nearly two years that the Ombudsperson Program has been in place, attorneys and judges alike have credited the program with providing an important channel for bench-bar communication about issues affecting attorneys' work on behalf of their clients in our courtrooms—the very heart of the court's mission and purpose. The Ombudsman Program is a vital part of our court's commitment to providing outstanding service to the public. I am pleased that Judges Smith and Kleinberg will continue assisting the court with this important service in the year to come."