Benjamin A. Seekins
Fairbanks District Court | Fourth Judicial District
Judge Seekins was appointed to the Fairbanks District Court in January of 2012. This is his fourth judicial retention election.
Performance Summary
The Alaska Judicial Council finds that Judge Seekins 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 opportunity for Judge Seekins to comment on his own performance.
“Although I am generally satisfied with my performance, I am continuously trying to improve....The most significant contribution is my participation on the New Judge Training Committee. I have consistently tried to prepare materials with good black letter law on a variety of topics.”
- Judge Seekins
Detailed Performance Findings
The Council evaluated Judge Seekins's performance on legal ability, integrity, impartiality and fairness, judicial temperament, and diligence and administrative skills. Judge Seekins met or exceeded the standard in each of these areas.
A summary of the Council’s findings on Judge Seekins'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 Seekins’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 Seekins’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 Seekins had 6 cases appealed and decided in the evaluation period, with an affirmance rate of 67% (Acceptable). A review of the opinions raised no concerns about his legal ability. For more details, see the Appellate Affirmance Report, linked below.
Judge Seekins 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 and court employees rated Judge Seekins’s impartiality and fairness as excellent. Peace and probation officers rated him as good. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Jurors who served in Judge Seekins’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 Seekins seldom asked for a different judge, except in 2023 when a number of prosecutors requested a change of judge. Prosecutors filed no requests for a different judge in 2024 or 2025.
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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 and court employees rated Judge Seekins’s integrity as excellent. Peace and probation officers rated him as good. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Judge Seekins 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 Seekins 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 Seekins’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 and court employees rated Judge Seekins’s judicial temperament as excellent. Peace and probation officers rated him as good. See chart below for numerical ratings.
Jurors who served in Judge Seekins’s courtroom rated him 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 and court employees rated Judge Seekins’s diligence and administrative skills as excellent. Peace and probation officers rated him as good. 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 Seekins was paid on schedule, and he certified that he had no untimely decisions.
Judge Seekins demonstrated commitment to improving the administation of justice and to community outreach. Judge Seekins:
- Serves on the Newer Judge Conference Planning Committee, a group that plans and teaches an annual conference for judges during their first three years on the bench;
- Developed training materials on a variety of topics for use by newer judges;
- Serves as a backup judge for the Fairbanks Wellness Court, a specialized docket that consists primarily of defendants who have been charged with felony-level DUIs; and
- Serves as a Training Judge for magistrate judges in his area.
See Judge Seekins'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 Seekins’s performance on key skills. Survey ratings from these groups are shown in the charts below.
