Arkansas Court of Appeals

From Judgepedia

The Arkansas Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court in Arkansas. It was created in 1978 by Amendment 58 to the Arkansas Constitution. The court handed down its first opinions for publication on August 8, 1979.

There are twelve judges on the court. They are elected to the court in non-partisan elections from seven appellate court districts to serve renewable six-year terms.

The term of court usually begins in mid-August and continues until July 4 of the following year. Opinions are available each Wednesday at 9:00 A.M. during the term.

Jurisdiction

The jurisdiction of the Arkansas Court of Appeals is determined by the Arkansas Supreme Court. There is no right of appeal from the Arkansas Court of Appeals to the Arkansas Supreme Court. However, opinions decided by the Arkansas Court of Appeals may be reviewed by the Arkansas Supreme Court on application by a party to the appeal, upon certification of the Arkansas Court of Appeals, or if the Arkansas Supreme Court decides the case is one that should have originally been assigned to it.

Judges

When the court was established in 1978, it had six judges. Legislation was adopted in 1993 by the state legislature to increase the number of judges to twelve.

The first six judges of the court were appointed by then-governor Bill Clinton; they were Ernie E. Wright, M. Steele Hays, George Howard, Jr., David Newbern, Marian F. Penix, and James H. Pilkinton. Wright was the first Chief Judge.

Qualifications

To serve on the court, a judge must:

• Be at least 30 years old.
• Be of good moral charater.
• Be learned in the law.
• Be a citizen of the United States.
• Have been a resident of Arkansas for more than two years.
• Must have practiced law for at least eight years.

Current judges

• Larry Vaught, Chief Judge
• Karen Baker
• Waymond Brown
• Robert Gladwin
• David Glover
• Rita Gruber
• Josephine Hart
• Courtney Henry
• Michael Kinard
• D.P. Marshall
• John Pittman
• John Robbins

Chief judge

The Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals serves for a four-year term and is appointed by the Chief Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court. John Vaught is the court's chief judge.

Former Court of Appeals judges

• Sam Bird
• Wendell Griffen
• Sarah Heffley
• Eugene Hunt

External links

• Website of the Arkansas Court of Appeals
• Opinions of the court
• Arkansas Courts Historical Background, compiled by William B. Jones, Jr.

Navigation

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v • d • e Judges of the Arkansas Court of Appeals Chief Judge Vaught Judges Baker • Brown • Gladwin • Glover • Gruber • Hart • Henry • Kinard • Marshall • Pittman • Robbins