Alaska Supreme Court

Alaska Supreme Court
Court information
Justices:	5
Founded:	1965
Location:	Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau
Judicial selection
Method:	Comm. select., Gov. appt.
Term:	10 years
Active justices
Dana Fabe  •  Walter Carpeneti  •  Daniel Winfree  •  Craig Stowers  •
Former justices

Founded in 1965 as provided in the state constitution, the Alaska Supreme Court is the state's court of last resort.

Justices

Jurisdiction

The Supreme Court has jurisdiction to review the decisions reached by lower courts within the state. The Court is required to accept appeals from previous decisions made by any Alaska Superior Court judge regarding civil issues, and including cases that originated in administrative agencies. The court has the option to hear appeals for criminal cases or petitions. In order for a criminal appeal to be heard, the appropriate appeals court must certify that the case involves a significant question of constitutional law, or it must be an issue of substantial public interest. The Supreme Court can choose whether or not to accept petitions of hearing from the lower courts on civil or criminal matters. The court may also review non-final decisions by the superior court in both civil and criminal cases. The court also hears other matters including bar admission, attorney discipline and state law questions raised in United States federal courts. The Court also has a supervisory role over the other courts in the state and is charged with making rules governing administration, practice and procedure in all courts.^[1] The court hears cases on a monthly basis in Anchorage, approximately quarterly in Fairbanks and Juneau, and as needed in other Alaska communities. The court prefers to hear argument in the city where the case was heard in the trial court.^[2]

Judicial Selection

See also: Judicial selection in Alaska

Alaska's supreme court justices are chosen using the Commission-selection, political appointment method of judicial selection. The Alaska Judicial Council forwards a list of its nominees to the governor, who must choose a name from the list within 45 days to fill any vacancy. Justices serve 10-year terms on the court. Appointed justices are then subject to a retention election at the state's first general election that is more than 3 years after the appointment. After that, the five justices are subject to a retention elections every ten years.

Qualifications

To be considered a candidate of the Supreme Court, the person must:

• Be a citizen of the United States.
• Be a resident of Alaska for at least five years prior to the time of appointment.
• Be licensed to practice law in Alaska at the time of appointment.
• Be actively engaged in law practice for eight years prior to the appointment.

Removal of justices

Justices can be removed in one of two ways:

• They may be suspended, removed from office, or censured by the Supreme Court upon the recommendation of the Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct.^[3]
• They may be impeached by two thirds of the Alaska Senate and subsequently convicted by two thirds of the House of Representatives.

Caseloads

Salaries

The Associate Justices of the court receive $188,604 annually, while the Chief Justice makes $189,156. ^[8]

Notable decisions

• News: Alaska high court steps in on DUI case, January 25, 2010
• News: Alaska Supreme Court blocks attempt to secede, January 20, 2010
• News: Alaska Supreme Court delivers ruling against Wasilla hospital, March 3, 2010

History of the court

Rabinowitz courthouse in Fairbanks, Alaska

The Alaska Supreme Court was first established five years after admission into the union in 1965. Before this all court cases were handled by district courts with appeals being directed to the United States federal courts. Since 1965 the court has been served by nineteen justices. The main seat of the court is in Anchorage, Alaska, at the Boney Courthouse, which is named after a former justice of the court, George Boney, who served on the court from December 1968-August 1972.^[9]

Notable Firsts

• Justice Dana Fabe was both the first woman to be appointed to serve on the court, as well as the court's first female Chief Justice.

See also

• Alaska
• Judicial selection in Alaska
• Alaska judicial news

External links

• Alaska Court System
• Alaska Bar Association
• Alaska Case Law Service
• Alaska 2008 judicial retention information (PDF). Scroll to pages 78-84.
• Gavel to Gavel a website broadcasts most oral arguments before the Alaska Supreme Court.
• Anchorage Daily News, "CIRI wins big with Alaska Supreme Court decision," February 11, 2012
• Petroleum News, "Alaska Supreme Court to hear Point Thomson dispute," January 22, 2012

References

2010 election

Dana Fabe, Alaska Supreme Court Justice Retention 2010 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
For retention		100,003	53.2%
Against retention		87,843	46.8%

• Click here for 2010 General Election Results from the Alaska Secretary of State.

Main article: Alaska Judges up for Retention Election in 2010

See also: Alaska judicial elections, 2010

2002 Election

Walter Carpeneti, Alaska Supreme Court Justice Retention 2002 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
For retention		130,566	66.7%
Against retention		65,117	33.3%

• Click here for 2002 General Election Results from the Alaska Secretary of State.