29.3 The Faculty Judicial Commission

(Amended 8/13)

1. Composition and appointment of Commission members.
   1. The Faculty Judicial Commission shall consist of at least thirty members: one Presiding Officer and at least twenty-nine regular panelists, four of whom shall be clinical faculty members. The Faculty Senate shall appoint the members of the Commission on an ongoing basis, so that whenever members are selected for service on a panel, additional members are appointed and ready for panel service. The Faculty Senate shall ensure that a sufficient number of the appointed members are available for service in the summer so that any cases arising under these procedures during the summer may proceed without delay. The President of the Faculty Senate shall designate one of the members to be the Presiding Officer of the Commission.
   2. To be eligible for service on the Faculty Judicial Commission as a potential panelist or Presiding Officer, a faculty member must be eligible for election to the Faculty Senate. Faculty members who serve administrative roles in the Office of the President or the Office of the Provost are exempted and prohibited for three years following such administrative service from serving on the Faculty Judicial Commission. Once appointed, all members of the Faculty Judicial Commission shall be trained for service in a Title IX case by the University's Title IX Coordinator or the Coordinator's designee.
   3. The term of appointment shall be for three years. If a panelist or Presiding Officer is unable to finish a term, the Faculty Senate shall appoint a replacement for the remainder of the term. No one who has served six consecutive years as a panelist in any combination of regular, interim, or special appointments may be reappointed as a panelist until a year has elapsed, but the term of any panelist will be extended in order that the panelist may finish a case. No one may serve more than two consecutive terms as Presiding Officer.
   4. A member of the Faculty Judicial Commission may be removed from that office by a majority vote of the Faculty Council following a recommendation by the Presiding Officer. The Presiding Officer may be removed from that office by a majority vote of the Faculty Council following a recommendation from the Faculty Senate President.
2. Functions of Presiding Officer and panelists.
   1. It shall be the responsibility of the Presiding Officer to:
      1. assign panelists to cases arising under these regulations;
      2. receive and forward communications as required by these regulations;
      3. maintain a file of all cases that are brought to the Commission;
      4. make periodic reports of the work of the Commission to the Faculty Council; and
      5. consult with the Investigating Officer and panelists concerning the meaning of the Faculty Dispute Procedures and procedural questions affecting the handling of a case.
   2. A faculty judicial panel serves as a hearing panel, as required, in the following situations:
      1. in a Denial of Tenure, Promotion, or Reappointment case, under III-29.5;
      2. in a Grievance case, under III-29.6;
      3. in an Ethics case, under III-29.7;
      4. in an Unacceptable Performance case, under III-29.8; or
      5. in a clinical faculty member Termination or Denial of Promotion or Reappointment case, under III-29.9.
3. Assignment of panelists to case.
   1. The Presiding Officer shall maintain a current list of the members of the Faculty Judicial Commission. This list shall be a public document and available to the parties in any case under these regulations. When a case arises requiring the assignment of a panel, the Presiding Officer shall not assign:
      1. any panelist whom the Presiding Officer determines has had prior interactions with any party that might make it difficult or appear to make it difficult for the panelist to be impartial;
      2. any panelist against whose service any party shows cause to the satisfaction of the Presiding Officer;
      3. any panelist whose faculty appointment is without tenure if the case concerns denial of tenure;
      4. any panelist whose rank is below the rank to which promotion is at issue in the case;
      5. any panelist who holds an appointment other than tenure-track in a case brought under III-29.5;
      6. any panelist who will not be able to serve continuously until the panel can make its final report;
      7. any panelist who has served on a panel during the preceding twelve months, unless it is determined that no other panelist is available for service on the new panel. In no case shall a panelist currently serving on a panel be appointed to serve on a second panel unless all other eligible members are also currently serving on a panel;
      8. any panelist in a Title IX case who has not been trained for service in a Title IX case by the University's Title IX Coordinator or the Coordinator's designee.
   2. In making assignments to a panel, after removing the names of panelists ineligible to serve by reason of the considerations specified in III-29.3c(1)(d)–(h), the Presiding Officer shall provide each party with a list of panelists eligible for assignment to the case. The Presiding Officer shall then delete from this list the names of any panelists about whom, in the Presiding Officer's judgment, one of the parties has raised a serious question of cause or a possible lack of impartiality under III-29.3c(1)a or
   3. The Presiding Officer shall then assign three panelists from the remaining list by lot or in any other random manner, except that, in making these assignments:
      1. the Presiding Officer shall not assign more than one panelist from any single college in any cases brought under the Denial of Tenure, Promotion or Reappointment procedures or the Clinical Faculty Member Termination or Denial of Promotion or Reappointment procedures;
      2. the Presiding Officer shall assign at least one panelist holding the rank of Professor to any panel in a case involving denial of tenure or promotion under III-29.5; and
      3. the Presiding Officer shall assign at least one panelist holding a clinical faculty member appointment in a case brought under III-29.9.
   4. After the composition of the panel has been determined, the Presiding Officer shall appoint one of the panelists to chair the panel.