{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-20-20-125","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 20, § 20-125","heading":"Office of secretary-bailiff - Creation - Appointment -","body":"Compensation and salary - Number - Retirement and other benefits –\n\nCLEET-certified.\n\nA. In all counties of the state there is created the office of\n\nsecretary-bailiff for district judges and associate district judges,\n\nand a secretary-bailiff for business court judges, with each such\n\nsecretary-bailiff to be appointed by order of the district judge,\n\nassociate district judge, or business court judge to serve at the\n\nwill of the appointing judge. The Chief Justice of the Supreme\n\nCourt shall approve by administrative directive the number and\n\nassignments of secretary-bailiffs in all counties of the state.\n\nEach secretary-bailiff shall be paid a salary pursuant to the salary\n\nschedule established by the annual appropriation for the district\n\ncourts and in accordance with the job description for the position\n\nto which appointed. For fiscal year 2023 and each fiscal year\n\nthereafter, each secretary-bailiff shall receive an annual salary of\n\nForty-two Thousand Dollars ($42,000.00). In each business court\n\ndivision, the business court judge may appoint a law clerk, who\n\nshall be an attorney licensed or eligible to become licensed to\n\npractice law in this state, to serve at the will of the appointing\n\njudge with an annual salary to be set by the Chief Justice. In\n\nevery county of the state each district judge and each associate\n\ndistrict judge, including business court judges in counties with a\n\nbusiness court division, may by order appoint additional necessary\n\ncourt personnel subject to the approval of the Chief Justice. A\n\npart-time bailiff shall be paid out of the court fund of the county\n\nwhere appointed at the rate set by administrative directive for each\n\nhour that such person actually attends the court and performs\n\nservices, or a pro rata fraction thereof for less than an hour of\n\nservice. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each district\n\njudge and associate district judge may contract with the sheriff of\n\nthe county to allow a deputy sheriff to provide bailiff service to\n\nthe court.\n\nB. With the approval of the presiding judge, a special judge\n\nmay appoint a secretary-bailiff or other personnel in accordance\n\nwith the administrative order of the Chief Justice.\n\nC. No judge shall engage more than one full-time secretary-\n\nbailiff at any given time except only during the progress of a jury\n\ntrial, when a part-time bailiff may be engaged subject to the\n\napproval of the Chief Justice. In the latter event, no more than\n\none additional bailiff shall be engaged to take charge of the jury.\n\nThe costs of meals and lodging of bailiffs ordered to keep a jury\n\ntogether during the process of a trial or after the jury retires for\n\ndeliberation shall be lawfully paid from the court fund.\n\nD. A district judge who sits regularly in more than one county\n\nmay employ only one full-time secretary-bailiff in the judicial\n\ndistrict of the judge, and in any other county of the district the\n\njudge may engage a bailiff only on a part-time basis when such judge\n\nsits in the county as a judge pursuant to the procedures set forth\n\nby the Chief Justice in the administrative directive. The cost of\n\nthe operation of the office of a district judge of a multi-county\n\njudicial district, including the purchase of equipment and supplies,\n\nmay be apportioned among the counties of that judicial district, or\n\nappropriate division of that district, based upon the percentage of\n\nrevenue collected by the courts of the district.\n\nE. The Administrative Director of the Courts shall develop and\n\npromulgate job descriptions, salary schedules and time-keeping forms\n\nfor part-time bailiff personnel. The Chief Justice of the Supreme\n\nCourt, through the Office of the Administrative Director of the\n\nCourts, shall promulgate rules for the compensation for overtime for\n\nall secretary-bailiff and part-time bailiff personnel employed.\n\nF. Persons employed by a county that does not meet the\nlop and\n\npromulgate job descriptions, salary schedules and time-keeping forms\n\nfor part-time bailiff personnel. The Chief Justice of the Supreme\n\nCourt, through the Office of the Administrative Director of the\n\nCourts, shall promulgate rules for the compensation for overtime for\n\nall secretary-bailiff and part-time bailiff personnel employed.\n\nF. Persons employed by a county that does not meet the\n\nrequirements of Section 951 of Title 19 of the Oklahoma Statutes,\n\nand who serve as full-time secretary-bailiffs or full-time bailiffs\n\nshall be eligible to participate in the state retirement system and\n\nstate insurance programs and any other benefits as are provided to\n\nstate employees in the unclassified service. All part-time bailiff\n\npersonnel shall be compensated by the local court fund.\n\nG. On October 1, 1989, the position of full-time bailiff shall\n\nbe redesignated as the position of secretary-bailiff in accordance\n\nwith the job descriptions, salary schedules, and procedures approved\n\nby the Chief Justice. Additional secretary-bailiff positions shall\n\nbe created as funding and employee positions are available.\n\nCounties shall be allowed to provide additional support personnel to\n\nthe judges sitting in such counties to the extent that funding is\n\navailable.\n\nH. Any secretary-bailiff who is certified by the Council on Law\n\nEnforcement Education and Training (CLEET) as a basic peace officer\n\nshall have and exercise all the powers and authority of a peace\n\nofficer. The Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts\n\nshall promulgate rules which prescribe the duties for all CLEET-\n\ncertified secretary-bailiffs. The provisions of this subsection\n\nwill not entitle a CLEET-certified secretary-bailiff to participate\n\nin the Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System.","path":["OK Code","Title 20"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os20.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"9d669ebe6a8f251c66028745f8cf1b39b4214bfc36b4b4d9dd25adcd09c93b63","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-20-20-124","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-20-20-126"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}