American Court Systems

Alabama Supreme Court Founded in 1819, the Alabama Supreme Court is the state's court of last resort. The court has the authority to review decisions reached by the lower courts and may also review matters of contention where the dollar amount in question exceeds $50,000, as long as no other Alabama court has jurisdiction. The court consists of nine justices: eight associate justices and one chief justice.[1] The supreme court was established by Article VI of the Alabama Constitution, Section 139. Currently every member of the supreme court is a partisan- elected Republican. Sue Bell Cobb, who retired in 2011, was the last Democrat to sit on the court

Justices Alabama Supreme Court Judge Appointed By Greg Shaw Elected Tommy Bryan William Sellers Gov. Kay Ivey (R) Lyn Stuart Kay Ivey (R) Brad Mendheim Michael Bolin Kelli Wise Tom Parker James Allen Main

Alabama Supreme Court All justices on the Alabama Supreme Court are elected for six-year terms in partisan elections. The composition of the court consists of eight associate justices and one chief justice. Vacancies, which can occur when a judge dies, resigns, retires or is removed from office, are filled through appointments by the governor of Alabama. The justice must run for the seat in the general election at least one year after being appointed. Qualifications To be considered a candidate for the supreme court, the person must: Be licensed to practice law in Alabama. Have lived in Alabama for at least one year. Be 70 years of age or younger at the time of candidacy. Chief justice The chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court is elected by popular vote.

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the country and leads the judicial branch of the federal government. It is often referred to by the acronym SCOTUS.[1] The Supreme Court consists of nine justices: the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices. The justices are nominated by the president and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the United States Senate per Article II of the United States Constitution. As federal judges, the justices serve during "good behavior," which means that justices have tenure for life unless they are removed by impeachment and subsequent conviction.[2] The Supreme Court is the only court established by the United States Constitution (in Article III); all other federal courts are created by Congress. The Supreme Court meets in Washington, D.C., in the United States Supreme Court building. The Supreme Court's yearly term begins on the first Monday in October and lasts until the first Monday in October the following year. The court generally releases the majority of its decisions in mid- June.

Article III gives Congress the authority to set the number of Supreme Court justices. The court currently has one chief justice and eight associate justices, but the number has fluctuated since 1789.  Originally, the total number of justices was set at six by the Judiciary Act of 1789. President George Washington signed the act into law on September 24, 1789, and he nominated John Jay to serve as the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Judiciary Act of 1801 reduced the number of justices from six to five. In 1807, Congress increased the number of justices on the Supreme Court to seven "in response to the geographic expansion of the nation and the increased caseload of the district courts in the west. The act established a Seventh Circuit, consisting of Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee, and specified that the new justice be assigned to preside over the U.S. circuit courts within that circuit." The Eighth and Ninth Circuits Act of 1837 created the Eighth and Ninth Circuits to provide for an expanded caseload due to the admission of new states to the Union. This Act also rearranged the Seventh Circuit and created two new seats on the Supreme Court to support the circuit court. The Tenth Circuit Act of 1863 created the Tenth Circuit to represent California and Oregon, eliminated the California Circuit Court and added another member to the Supreme Court. This act gave the Supreme Court its highest number of members in history, with the chief justice and nine associate justices serving.

The Judicial Circuits Act of 1866 reorganized the circuits in the thirty-six state nation, reducing the number of circuits from ten to nine. This reorganization created a basic structure of circuits lasting to present day. The Act also eliminated three positions on the Supreme Court. The Judiciary Act of 1869 again increased the size of the Supreme Court, setting it at nine justices, one for each circuit. Tenure According to SupremeCourt.gov, "The Constitution states that Justices 'shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour.' This means that the Justices hold office as long as they choose and can only be removed from office by impeachment. The only Justice to be impeached was Associate Justice Samuel Chase in 1805. The House of Representatives passed Articles of Impeachment against him; however, he was acquitted by the Senate. Salary Section I states that justices will "receive for their Services a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office." According to the Judicial Learning Center, "This security allows judges to decide each case strictly in terms of the legal issues in front of them, no matter how unpopular their decisions may be," which helps guarantee judicial independence. In 2016, the salary for Chief Justice John Roberts was set at $260,700, and the salary for the associate justices was set at $249,300.

z Court Structure http://www.courtstatistic s.org/Other- Pages/State_Court_Str ucture_Charts/Alabama .aspx