Rule 3.903.Selection and qualifications of referee

Rule 3.903 opens the chapter governing stipulated references by making clear that a stipulation does not hand the parties, or the court, a free hand in picking a referee. The court still appoints the referee the way section 640 provides, whether that means confirming a person the parties jointly proposed or working through whatever selection mechanics that statute sets out. Agreeing to a reference under section 638 settles that a referee will hear the case; it does not bypass the appointment procedure the Legislature wrote for choosing who that referee will be.

The second sentence adds a floor for a particular category of referee: a former judicial officer. If the person proposed once sat on the bench, the rule requires that person to be an active or inactive member of the State Bar. A retired judge who has let bar membership lapse entirely cannot serve, even with every party's agreement, which keeps a stipulated referee tethered to the same professional-licensing framework that governs every other lawyer the parties might have chosen instead.