AJC Home > Retention Election Information > J. Patrick Hanley
VOTE YES
J. Patrick Hanley
Anchorage District Court | Third Judicial District
Judge Hanley was appointed to the Anchorage District Court in January of 2005. This is his fifth retention election.
Performance Summary
After conducting its performance review, the Judicial Council determined that Judge Hanley met or exceeded performance standards on all criteria, including professional competence and legal ability, integrity, impartiality and fairness, temperament, diligence, and administrative skills.
The Council also determined that Judge Hanley met or exceeded educational requirements set by the Alaska Supreme Court, complied with judicial ethics requirements, and made exceptional contributions to the community and to the administration of justice.
Because Judge Hanley met or exceeded all performance and educational standards, the Alaska Judicial Council recommends a “yes” vote on retention in office.
Performance Findings
The Council conducts a thorough performance review of each judge standing for retention. Key findings for Judge Hanley include:
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Ratings by justice system professionals: Attorneys who appeared before Judge Hanley gave him excellent reviews (4.7 overall), as did court employees (4.9 overall), and peace and probation officers (4.5 overall). The chart provided summarizes Judge Hanley’s survey ratings.
Juror Survey:
Jurors who served in Judge Hanley’s courtroom were surveyed about his performance, and they gave him excellent ratings. The chart provided summarizes Judge Hanley's juror survey ratings.- Detailed survey ratings can be viewed here.
Professional and community activities: Judge Hanley made exceptional contributions to the community and to the administration of justice.
- Judge Hanley served as a Magistrate Training Judge, a role that involves training magistrate judges.
- He chaired the court system’s Criminal Rules Committee, a group that reviews and adopts revisions to the rules governing criminal cases.
- Judge Hanley served on the Workplace Conduct Committee, a group established by the Alaska Supreme Court to review and revise the court system’s discrimination and discriminatory harassment policy consistent with best practices, as well to consider policies to address incivility and other conduct that negatively impacts the work environment.
- He served on the Fairness and Access Commission, a group established by the Alaska Supreme Court to oversee initiatives in the areas of increasing access to civil justice and increasing fairness and access to the courts for all Alaskans.
- Judge Hanley participated in Color of Justice, a law-related education program designed to promote diversity in the legal profession and judiciary by encouraging diverse youth to consider careers as lawyers and judges.
- He served on the Anchorage Security Committee.
- Judge Hanley volunteered to serve as one of the initial judges to participate in the Online Dispute Resolution Program, a pilot project helping people resolve their disputes through mediation and negotiation via an online platform.
- More information about Judge Hanley's professioal, educational, and outreach activites can be found here.
Other performance indicators: A review of Judge Hanley’s financial and conflict of interest statements showed he complied with all disclosure requirements.
Timeliness: Alaska law requires judges’ pay be withheld when a decision has been pending longer than six months. The Council verified that Judge Hanley was paid on schedule, and he certified that he had no untimely decisions.
Ethics: There were no public disciplinary proceedings against Judge Hanley, and the Council’s review found no ethical concerns.
