Katherine H. Lybrand
Ketchikan Superior Court | First Judicial District
Judge Lybrand was appointed to the Ketchikan Superior Court in June of 2022. This is her first judicial retention election in this position.
Performance Summary
The Alaska Judicial Council finds that Judge Lybrand met or exceeded performance standards and recommends a "YES" vote for her 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 Lybrand, and an opportunity for Judge Lybrand to comment on her own performance.
“I greatly enjoy serving as a judge in my home community of Ketchikan and my newfound community of Petersburg. The work is challenging, dynamic, and humbling.”
- Judge Lybrand
Detailed Performance Findings
The Council evaluated Judge Lybrand’s performance on legal ability, integrity, impartiality and fairness, judicial temperament, and diligence and administrative skills. Judge Lybrand met or exceeded the standard in each of these areas.
A summary of the Council’s findings on Judge Lybrand'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 her work rated Judge Lybrand’s legal ability as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings. Attorneys who appeared in cases before her gave positive reviews.
Jurors who served in Judge Lybrand’s courtroom rated her 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 Lybrand had five cases appealed and decided in the evaluation period, with an affirmance rate of 100% (Excellent). A review of the opinions raised no concerns about her legal ability. For more details, see the Appellate Affirmance Report, linked below.
Judge Lybrand 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 Lybrand’s impartiality and fairness as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Jurors who served in Judge Lybrand’s courtroom rated her 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 Lybrand 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 Lybrand’s impartiality and fairness as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Judge Lybrand 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 Lybrand was not the subject of any public disciplinary proceedings before the Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct, and that she 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 Lybrand’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 Lybrand’s judicial temperament as excellent. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Jurors who served in Judge Lybrand’s courtroom rated her as excellent on 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 Lybrand’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 Lybrand was paid on schedule, and she certified that she had no untimely decisions.
Judge Lybrand demonstrated commitment to improving the administation of justice and to community outreach. Judge Lybrand:
- Serves on the court system’s Child Support Guidelines Review Committee, a group that advises the Alaska Supreme Court on the rules governing calculation of child support;
- Serves as a Training judge for magistrate judges in Ketchikan, Juneau, and Haines;
- Was a member of a committee addressing the court system’s registration process for protective orders issued by other states and tribal courts;
- Participated in stakeholder meetings regarding the development of a specialized court handling Indian Child Welfare Act cases in Juneau;
- Participated in a panel at a training sponsored by the Alaska Native Justice Center for new ICWA workers;
- Participated in a judges’ panel with Facing Foster Care in Alaska;
- Participated in a panel sponsored by the court system to teach journalists about court processes; and
- Helped recruit graduating law students to work as judicial clerks in Alaska.
See Judge Lybrand's retention questionnaire for more information.
The Judicial Council distributed electronic surveys to attorneys, court employees, and jurors asking them to rate Judge Lybrand's performance on key skills. Survey ratings from these groups are shown in the charts below.
