Unavailability under W. Va. Code § 51-2-1(c) (Supp. 2024)

(a) If the sitting judge in a single-judge circuit court shall be unavailable by reason of sickness, vacation, or other reason including voluntary recusal as set forth in TCR 17.02, the Circuit Court of Raleigh County has concurrent jurisdiction pursuant to W. Va. Code § 51-2-1(c) (Supp. 2024). In such instances, the following procedures shall be utilized. (1) If the judge in the single-judge circuit court is voluntarily recused from a case, the judge must enter an order in the affected case in the circuit clerk’s office in the county where the case is pending. This order shall indicate the judge’s voluntary recusal, notify the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County of the recusal, and request the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County to assign a judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County to preside over the case. The circuit clerk shall ensure that the order is served on all counsel of record and any unrepresented party, and shall transmit the order to the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County. The Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County shall then assign a judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County to the case; this assignment shall be reflected in an order entered in the circuit clerk’s office in the county where the case is pending and shall be served on all counsel of record and any unrepresented party. (2) If the judge in the single-judge circuit court is temporarily unavailable by reason of sickness, vacation, or other reason not including voluntary recusal and determines that the assistance of another judge is necessary, the judge in the single-judge circuit shall inform the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County. The Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County may arrange for a judge of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County to preside in the single-judge circuit on a temporary basis. (b) The assignment of a Raleigh County judge pursuant to this rule does not change the venue of an affected case. However, this does not preclude the parties from voluntarily agreeing to attend hearings or proceedings in Raleigh County, and the circuit court may conduct hearings or proceedings by using videoconferencing as provided in TCR 14. (c) Any and all documents filed or entered in matters reassigned to a Raleigh County judge pursuant to this procedure shall be entered in the circuit clerk’s office of the original county of venue.