Judiciary of Alaska

Last updated

The Alaska Court System is the unified, centrally administered, and totally state-funded judicial system for the state of Alaska. The Alaska District Courts are the primary misdemeanor trial courts, the Alaska Superior Courts are the primary felony trial courts, and the Alaska Supreme Court and the Alaska Court of Appeals are the primary appellate courts. The chief justice of the Alaska Supreme Court is the administrative head of the Alaska Court System.

Contents

Courts

The western end of Fourth Avenue in downtown Anchorage. The Nesbett Courthouse (named in honor of Buell A. Nesbett) is at left. The administrative offices for the court system are in the smaller building at right foreground, formerly the home of the Anchorage Times newspaper. Anchorage in February.jpg
The western end of Fourth Avenue in downtown Anchorage. The Nesbett Courthouse (named in honor of Buell A. Nesbett) is at left. The administrative offices for the court system are in the smaller building at right foreground, formerly the home of the Anchorage Times newspaper.

Alaska has four levels of state courts:

The district courts are the primary misdemeanor trial courts, the superior courts are the primary felony trial courts although they also sometimes hear appeals from the district courts, and the supreme court and the court of appeals are the primary appellate courts.

Alaska is separated into 4 judicial districts.

Supreme Court

The Alaska Supreme Court is the state supreme court. The supreme court is composed of the chief justice and four associate justices. They choose one of their own members to serve a three-year term as chief justice.

The decisions of the Alaska Supreme Court are binding on all other Alaska state courts, and the only other courts that may reverse or modify those decisions are the United States federal courts. The Supreme Court hears appeals from lower state courts and also administers the state's judicial system. The Alaska Supreme Court is required to hear appeals in civil cases in the first instance and is not able to exercise its discretion whether to consider appeals previously heard by other appellate courts.

Court of Appeals

The Rabinowitz Courthouse in downtown Fairbanks. Rabinowitz Courthouse Fairbanks Alaska.jpg
The Rabinowitz Courthouse in downtown Fairbanks.

The Alaska Court of Appeals is an intermediary court of appeals for criminal cases, and is composed of a chief judge and two associate judges. The chief judge of the court of appeals is selected from among the three by the chief justice of the supreme court to serve a two-year term. The court of appeals has jurisdiction to hear appeals from judgments in criminal cases and certain other quasi-criminal cases in which a minor is accused of committing a crime (juvenile delinquency cases), cases in which prisoners are challenging the legality of their confinement (habeas corpus and post-conviction relief matters), and cases involving probation and parole decisions. Also, a defendant in a criminal case who appeals from district court to superior court can ask the court of appeals to review the resulting decision of the superior court, but the court of appeals may, in its discretion, refuse to hear the appeal.

Superior courts

The Alaska superior courts are the trial courts of general jurisdiction. [1] The court hears appeals from the district court. [2]

District courts

The court in Homer, Alaska, which was formerly a district court before being made a superior court in 2020. Homer Courthouse August 17, 2010.jpg
The court in Homer, Alaska, which was formerly a district court before being made a superior court in 2020.

The Alaska district courts are lower trial courts that can hear misdemeanor criminal cases and civil cases where the amount in controversy is less than $100,000. They have historically been Alaska's busiest courts. [3] District court judges also issue arrest warrants and search warrants and handle arraignments, and may also serve as coroners, hold inquests, and record vital statistics. [4] In 1992 there were 17 statewide. [4]

Magistrate courts

Magistrates may issue writs, marriage licenses, summonses, arrest and search warrants, and notarizations. [4] They may also handle preliminary proceedings in criminal cases. [4]

Administration

The chief justice of the Alaska Supreme Court is the administrative head of the Alaska court system. An administrative director is appointed by the chief justice with concurrence of the supreme court. The director supervises the administration of all courts in the state. Rules governing the administration of all courts and the rules of practice and procedure for civil and criminal cases are promulgated by the supreme court. The Alaska legislature may change the court's procedural rules by passing an act expressing its intent to do so by a two-thirds majority of both houses.

The Alaska Bar Association is the mandatory association responsible for the admission and discipline process of attorneys and administering the bar examination. It is responsible to the Alaska Supreme Court. It is governed by a board of governors with nine attorneys and three public members.

The Alaska Judicial Council nominates judges for vacancies after accepting applications and surveying Alaska Bar Association members to assess each candidate. [5] The Alaska Judicial Council also solicits opinions from Alaska Bar Association members, police officers, and probation officers concerning judges in retention elections and publish recommendations that appear in voter pamphlets. [6]

The Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct makes recommendations regarding disqualification, suspension, removal, retirement, and censure of judges. [7] It is composed of 3 judges appointed by judges, 3 lawyers appointed by the Alaska Bar Association, and 3 citizens appointed by the governor and confirmed by the legislature. [7]

In addition, the office of the clerk of the appellate courts supports the work of the supreme court and the court of appeals. The clerk is required to be an attorney. The clerk's responsibilities include monitoring the caseflow through the supreme court and the court of appeals and making recommendations for improvements in appellate procedure. The clerk is also responsible for all case filing and calendaring, publishing opinions, and related tasks. The clerk's office is located in Anchorage, and deputy clerks are located in Juneau, Anchorage, and Fairbanks. Marilyn May was appointed clerk of the appellate courts in October 1998.

Officers

Judges

Alaska uses a Missouri Plan merit selection system for judges and justices. [8] The governor appoints a justice or judge from a list of qualified candidates submitted by the Alaska Judicial Council. [8] The governor has 45 days from receipt of the list to make the appointment. All judges and justices in Alaska must stand for judicial retention elections (approval by the voters) on a nonpartisan ballot at the first statewide general election held more than three years after appointment (two for District Court judges), and periodically thereafter. [8] [7] Magistrates are appointed by the presiding superior court judge of a judicial district. [4]

History

The supreme court and the superior courts were established in the Alaska constitution, which took effect upon statehood in 1959. Later that year, the Alaska legislature created a district court for each judicial district and granted power to the supreme court to increase or decrease the number of district court judges. In 1980, to ease the appellate burden on the supreme court, the legislature created a court of appeals.

See also

Related Research Articles

In the United States, a state supreme court is the highest court in the state judiciary of a U.S. state. On matters of state law, the judgment of a state supreme court is considered final and binding in both state and federal courts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Hampshire Supreme Court</span> Highest court in the U.S. state of New Hampshire

The New Hampshire Supreme Court is the supreme court of the U. S. state of New Hampshire and sole appellate court of the state. The Supreme Court is seated in the state capital, Concord. The Court is composed of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices appointed by the Governor and Executive Council to serve during "good behavior" until retirement or the age of seventy. The senior member of the Court is able to specially assign lower-court judges, as well as retired justices, to fill vacancies on the Court.

The Alaska Supreme Court is the state supreme court for the U.S. state of Alaska. Its decisions are binding on all other Alaska state courts, and the only court its decisions may be appealed to is the Supreme Court of the United States. The Alaska Supreme Court hears appeals from lower state courts and also administers the state's judicial system.

The Alaska Court of Appeals is an intermediate court of appeals for criminal cases in the State of Alaska's judicial department, created in 1980 by the Alaska Legislature as an additional appellate court to lessen the burden on the Alaska Supreme Court. The court of appeals consists of a chief judge and three associate judges, who are all appointed by the governor of Alaska and face judicial retention elections every eight years; the chief judge of the court of appeals is selected from among the four by the chief justice of the supreme court to serve a two-year term.

The structure of the judiciary of Texas is laid out in Article 5 of the Constitution of Texas and is further defined by statute, in particular the Texas Government Code and Texas Probate Code. The structure is complex, featuring many layers of courts, numerous instances of overlapping jurisdiction, several differences between counties, as well as an unusual bifurcated appellate system at the top level found in only one other state: Oklahoma. Municipal Courts are the most active courts, with County Courts and District Courts handling most other cases and often sharing the same courthouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York City Criminal Court</span> Court for misdemeanors, arraignments, and preliminary hearings

The Criminal Court of the City of New York is a court of the State Unified Court System in New York City that handles misdemeanors and lesser offenses, and also conducts arraignments and preliminary hearings in felony cases.

The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with statewide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The New Jersey Constitution of 1947 establishes the power of the New Jersey courts. Under the State Constitution, "'judicial power shall be vested in a Supreme Court, a Superior Court, County Courts and inferior courts of limited jurisdiction.'" The Superior Court has three divisions: the Appellate Division is essentially an intermediate appellate court while the Law and Chancery Divisions function as trial courts. The State Constitution renders the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division the intermediate appellate court, and "[a]ppeals may be taken to the Appellate Division of the Superior Court from the law and chancery divisions of the Superior Court and in such other causes as may be provided by law." Each division is in turn divided into various parts. "The trial divisions of the Superior Court are the principal trial courts of New Jersey. They are located within the State's various judicial geographic units, called 'vicinages,' R. 1:33-2(a), and are organized into two basic divisions: the Chancery Division and the Law Division".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oklahoma Court on the Judiciary</span>

The Oklahoma Court on the Judiciary is one of the two independent courts in the Oklahoma judiciary and has exclusive jurisdiction in adjudicating discipline and hearing cases involving the removal of a judge from office, excluding the Oklahoma Supreme Court, exercising judicial power under the Oklahoma Constitution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judiciary of Oklahoma</span>

The Oklahoma Court System is the judicial system for the U.S. State of Oklahoma. Based in Oklahoma City, the court system is a unified state court system that functions under the Chief Justice of Oklahoma who is its administrator-in-chief.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oregon Judicial Department</span>

The Oregon Judicial Department (OJD) is the judicial branch of government of the state of Oregon in the United States. The chief executive of the branch is the Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court. Oregon’s judiciary consists primarily of four different courts: the Oregon Supreme Court, the Oregon Tax Court, the Oregon Court of Appeals, and the Oregon circuit courts. Additionally, the OJD includes the Council on Court Procedures, the Oregon State Bar, Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability, and the Public Defense Services Commission. Employees of the court are the largest non-union group among state workers.

The Georgia Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the U.S. state of Georgia.

The Government of Guam (GovGuam) is a presidential representative democratic system, whereby the President is the head of state and the Governor is head of government, and of a multi-party system. Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States with policy relations between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs.

The Judiciary of Vermont is the state court system of Vermont, charged with Vermont law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judiciary of New York (state)</span>

The Judiciary of New York is the judicial branch of the Government of New York, comprising all the courts of the State of New York.

The Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania is the unified state court system of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals</span>

The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals is one of two appellate courts in the Alabama judicial system. The court was established in 1969 when what had been one unitary state Court of Appeals was broken into a criminal appeals court and a civil appeals court. The unitary Court of Appeals had been operative since 1911. The Court of Criminal Appeals is the linear descendant of the unitary Court of Appeals as its predecessor judges were automatically assigned to the Court of Criminal Appeals in 1969. At that time the court only had three judges, but that was changed to five in 1971. The court is housed in the Heflin-Torbert Judicial Building in downtown Montgomery, Alabama.

The Alameda County Superior Court, officially the Superior Court of California, County of Alameda, is the California superior court with jurisdiction over Alameda County as established by Article VI of the Constitution of California. It functions as the trial court for both criminal and civil cases filed in Alameda County.

The Rhode Island Superior Court is the state trial court of general jurisdiction in Rhode Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judiciary of California</span>

The Judiciary of California or the Judicial Branch of California is defined under the California Constitution as holding the judicial power of the state of California which is vested in the Supreme Court, the Courts of Appeal and the Superior Courts. The judiciary has a hierarchical structure with the California Supreme Court at the top, California Courts of Appeal as the primary appellate courts, and the California Superior Courts as the primary trial courts.

The Judiciary of Virginia is defined under the Constitution and law of Virginia and is composed of the Supreme Court of Virginia and subordinate courts, including the Court of Appeals, the Circuit Courts, and the General District Courts. Its administration is headed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Judicial Council, the Committee on District Courts, the Judicial Conferences, the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission, and various other offices and officers.

References

  1. ↑ "Alaska Trial Courts". Alaska State Court Law Library. Archived from the original on 2 June 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  2. ↑ McBeath, Gerald Alan (1994). Alaska Politics and Government . Politics and Governments of the American States. University of Nebraska Press. p.  194. ISBN   0-8032-8149-8. LCCN   93-5390.
  3. ↑ McBeath 1994, pp. 194–196.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 McBeath 1994, p. 196.
  5. ↑ McBeath 1994, p. 198.
  6. ↑ McBeath 1994, pp. 198–199.
  7. 1 2 3 McBeath 1994, p. 199.
  8. 1 2 3 McBeath 1994, p. 197.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.