Michigan Court of Appeals

Last updated

Michigan Court of Appeals
Established1 January 1965
JurisdictionFlag of Michigan.svg  Michigan
Location Detroit (1st District)
Troy (2nd District)
Grand Rapids (3rd District)
Lansing (4th District)
Composition method election; appointment
Authorised byMI Const. art. VI, § 1
Appeals to Michigan Supreme Court
Judge term length6 years
Number of positions25
Website Michigan Court Appeals
Chief Judge
CurrentlyMichael F. Gadola
Division map
Appeals.png

The Michigan Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court of the state of Michigan. It was created by the Michigan Constitution of 1963, and commenced operations in 1965. Its opinions are reported both in an official publication of the State of Michigan, Michigan Appeals Reports, as well as the unofficial, privately published North Western Reporter , published by West. Appeals from this court's decisions go to the Michigan Supreme Court.

Contents

History

The court originally had only nine judges. The number was steadily increased by the Michigan Legislature to accommodate the court's growing caseload—to 12 in 1969, to 18 in 1974, to 24 in 1988, and to 28 in 1993. [1] In 2012, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed into law legislation which provided for the transition of each of the court's 4 election districts to 6 judges, which will bring the court back to 24 judges over time through attrition. [2]

Overview

District I of the Michigan Court of Appeals is located in Cadillac Place, a State office complex in Detroit. CadillacPlaceNewCenterdetroit1.jpg
District I of the Michigan Court of Appeals is located in Cadillac Place, a State office complex in Detroit.

The court has 25 judges who are elected from four electoral districts for 6-year terms on a non-partisan ballot. Vacancies are filled by the governor. Judges or candidates who reach the age of 70 are not allowed to run for election. [3] Although the judges are elected in districts, they sit as one statewide court. [1]

Cases are heard by panels of 3 judges, similarly to the U.S. Courts of Appeals. Like most appellate courts, the Court of Appeals observes the principle of stare decisis , where a court's reasoning in its past precedents binds its present decisions. When a panel of the court disagrees with a prior precedent, it must abide by the earlier decision in deciding the case at hand. When a panel expresses its disagreement with a prior precedent, there is a mechanism to convene a special 7-member "conflict panel" (similar to the en banc procedure in the U.S. Courts of Appeals) that resolves the conflict between the earlier decision and the expressed desire of a panel of the court's judges to depart from that precedent. Unlike the circuits of the federal courts, the Michigan Court of Appeal's precedents apply are applied statewide regardless of the district in which an opinion is handed down. [1]

Districts

The court has four electoral districts:

All four districts have offices in these locations, but the 2nd District in Troy does not have a courtroom. Due to the geographic size of the 4th District, the court will, on occasion, schedule a panel to hear cases in a northern Michigan city (such as Marquette, Petoskey, or Traverse City), for the convenience of the parties. [1]

Each district elects six or seven judges, but the judges on the various panels are not drawn from specific districts. There are also four case filing districts based around geographic proximity to the court's physical records; because of this, the lines of the electoral districts and case filing districts do not correspond. [4]

Current judges

DistrictJudgeBornJoinedTerm endsAppointed byLaw school
4thMichael F. Gadola, Chief Judge1961 (age 6364)December 5, 20142028 Rick Snyder (R) Wayne
1st Kirsten Frank Kelly August 10, 1956 (age 68)January 1, 20012030 [a] Detroit Mercy
1st Christopher M. Murray February 14, 1964 (age 61)20022026 John Engler (R)Detroit Mercy
4thStephen L. BorrelloJune 9, 1959 (age 65)20032030 Jennifer Granholm (D) Michigan State
4thMichael J. KellyApril 3, 1962 (age 63)January 1, 20092026 [a] Michigan State
3rdMark T. Boonstra1959 (age 6566)March 20, 20122026 Rick Snyder (R) Michigan
1stMichael J. RiordanApril 18, 1960 (age 65)March 21, 20122030 Rick Snyder (R)Detroit Mercy
2nd Colleen A. O'Brien May 19, 1956 (age 69)October 26, 20152028 Rick Snyder (R)Michigan State
4thBrock A. Swartzle1971 (age 5354)January 1, 20172028 Rick Snyder (R) George Mason
1stThomas C. Cameron1969 (age 5556)July 17, 20172028 Rick Snyder (R)Wayne
1stAnica Letica1960 (age 6465)June 18, 20182026 Rick Snyder (R)Wayne
3rdJames Robert RedfordOctober 8, 1960 (age 64)December 21, 20182028 Rick Snyder (R)Detroit Mercy
4thMichelle M. Rick1970 (age 5455)January 1, 20212026 [a] Detroit Mercy
2ndSima G. Patel1978 (age 4647)February 28, 20222026 Gretchen Whitmer (D) Cooley
1stKristina Robinson GarrettApril 4, 20222028 Gretchen Whitmer (D)Detroit Mercy
3rd Christopher P. Yates 1961 (age 6364)April 18, 20222030 Gretchen Whitmer (D) Illinois
3rdKathleen A. Feeney1962 (age 6263)January 1, 20232028 [a] Illinois
4thAllie Greenleaf Maldonado1970 (age 5455)January 9, 20232026 Gretchen Whitmer (D)Michigan
2ndAdrienne N. Young1987 (age 3738)February 20, 20242030 Gretchen Whitmer (D) Chicago
3rdPhilip P. Mariani1979 (age 4546)March 15, 20242030 Gretchen Whitmer (D) Penn
2ndRandy J. Wallace1973 (age 5152)August 12, 20242030 Gretchen Whitmer (D)Wayne
2ndMatthew S. Ackerman1991 (age 3334)January 1, 20252030 [a] Columbia
3rdDaniel S. Korobkin1979 (age 4546)May 12, 20252026 Gretchen Whitmer (D) Yale
2ndChristopher M. Trebilcock1974 (age 5051)May 19, 20252026 Gretchen Whitmer (D) Wake Forest
1stMariam Bazzi1979 (age 4546)May 27, 20252026 Gretchen Whitmer (D)Wayne
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Took office after being elected in a nonpartisan election.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Court of Appeals History". Michigan Courts. The Michigan Supreme Court. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  2. "After signing law to shrink Court of Appeals, Snyder to add another judge". Detroit Free Press. Gannett. May 25, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  3. "Frequently Asked Questions". Michigan Courts. Michigan Supreme Court. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  4. "Case Filing District Map". Michigan Courts. Michigan Supreme Court. Retrieved September 24, 2022.