Chris Darnall
Anchorage District Court | Third Judicial District
Judge Darnall was appointed to the Anchorage District Court in July of 2024. This is his first retention election.
Performance Summary
The Alaska Judicial Council finds that Judge Darnall met or exceeded performance standards and recommends a "YES" vote for his retention in office.
This conclusion is based on surveys and reviews from attorneys, court employees, jurors, and other user groups familiar with the judge's work, analysis of the judge's financial disclosure documents, analysis of how often the judge's decisions were affirmed on appeal, whether their pay was withheld for untimely decisions, how often the judge was disqualified from a case, whether the judge followed standards of ethical conduct and continuing education, input from the public, and the judge's demonstrated commitment to the administration of justice and the community.
The Council’s evaluation process included an interview with Judge Darnall and an opportunity for Judge Darnall to comment on his own performance.
“I believe my performance has been satisfactory. I sincerely enjoy the work and take every case seriously, no matter what issues are being presented…I feel like the litigants who leave my courtroom are ‘heard’ even when ruled against.”
— Judge Darnall
Detailed Performance Findings
The Council evaluated Judge Darnall’s performance on legal ability, integrity, impartiality and fairness, judicial temperament, and diligence and administrative skills. Judge Darnall met or exceeded the standard in each of these areas.
A summary of the Council’s findings on Judge Darnall's performance is presented here. Complete reports are posted in the source documents below.
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▼ Legal Ability
Did the judge demonstrate knowledge of substantive law, evidence and procedure, and clarity and precision in their work?
Attorneys familiar with Judge Darnall’s work rated his legal ability as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings. Attorneys who appeared in cases before him gave positive reviews.
Jurors who served in Judge Darnall’s courtroom rated his attentiveness, intelligence and skill as excellent.
In Alaska, a party who disagrees with a trial judge’s decision can appeal to a higher court. The appeal court analyzes the judge’s decision and issues an opinion. The Council reviews all the opinions and analyzes how often and why individual judges are affirmed or reversed as one measure of the judge’s legal ability. Judge Darnall had no cases appealed and decided in the evaluation period. For more details, see the Appellate Affirmance Report, linked below.
Judge Darnall met or exceeded educational requirements set by the Alaska Supreme Court.
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▼ Impartiality & Fairness
Did the judge demonstrate a sense of fairness and justice and treat all parties equally?
Attorneys, court employees, and peace and probation officers rated Judge Darnall’s impartiality and fairness as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Jurors who served in Judge Darnall’s courtroom rated his impartiality as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Court rules allow a litigant at the beginning of a case to file a request for change of judge. Parties whose cases were assigned to Judge Darnall seldom asked for a different judge.
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▼ Integrity
Was the judge's conduct free from impropriety or the appearance of impropriety, and did the judge make decisions without regard to possible public criticism?
Attorneys, court employees, and peace and probation officers rated Judge Darnall’s integrity as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Judge Darnall filed financial disclosure statements with the Alaska Public Offices Commission and separate conflict-of-interest forms with the court system as required, and the Council found no items of concern in these disclosures.
The Council confirmed that Judge Darnall was not the subject of any public disciplinary proceedings before the Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct, and that he followed standards of ethical conduct for judges.
Judges must disqualify themselves from cases where they have a conflict of interest or their impartiality might reasonably be questioned. The Council found no concern about Judge Darnall’s performance on this requirement.
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▼ Judicial Temperament
Was the judge courteous and free from arrogance, and did the judge manifest human understanding and compassion?
Attorneys, court employees, and peace and probation officers rated Judge Darnall’s judicial temperament as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Jurors who served in Judge Darnall’s courtroom rated him as excellent for respectful and courteous behavior.
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▼ Diligence & Administrative Skills
Was the judge prepared for court proceedings, did the judge work diligently, and was the judge reasonably prompt in making decisions?
Attorneys, court employees, and peace and probation officers rated Judge Darnall’s diligence and administrative skills as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Under Alaska law, a judge cannot receive a paycheck if they have any decision undecided or uncompleted for more than six months. Each pay cycle, judges must sign an affidavit declaring that no matter referred to them has remained undecided or uncompleted for more than six months. The Council verified that Judge Darnall was paid on schedule, and he certified that he had no untimely decisions.
Judge Darnall demonstrated commitment to improving the administation of justice and to community outreach. Judge Darnall:
- Serves on the Anchorage court’s Exhibits subcommittee that is working to address standards for court exhibits;
- Works with court staff to address issues with the electronic systems currently in use for case management;
- Spoke with local students who visited the courthouse for a class activity.
See Judge Darnall's retention questionnaire for more information.
The Judicial Council distributed electronic surveys to attorneys, court employees, jurors, and peace and probation officers asking them to rate Judge Darnall’s performance on key skills. Survey ratings from these groups are shown in the charts below.
