Oregon Supreme Court

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Oregon Supreme Court
200pxSSCBadgeforVNT.png
Court information
Justices:   7
Judicial selection
Method:   Non-partisan election of judges
Term:   6 years
Active justices

Thomas Balmer  •  Martha Walters  •  Rives Kistler  •  Virginia Linder  •  David V. Brewer  •  Jack Landau  •  Richard C. Baldwin  •  

Former justices

The Oregon Supreme Court is the highest court in Oregon. No other court in the state may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court.[1]

Justices

The current justices of the court are:
JudgeTermAppointed byParty
Chief justice Thomas Balmer2001 - presentJohn Kitzhaber
Justice Martha Walters1997 - 2015Ted Kulongoski
Justice Rives Kistler1999 - presentTed Kulongoski
Justice Virginia Linder2006 - 2019
Justice David V. Brewer1/2013-2019
Justice Jack Landau1992 - present
Justice Richard C. Baldwin2013-2018Gov. John Kitzhaber


Chief justice

Thomas Balmer was sworn in on May 1, 2012 when former Chief Justice Paul De Muniz stepped down. Before serving as chief justice Balmer was an associate justice (holding Position 1) of the Supreme Court, a position to which he was initially appointed on September 20, 2001 by then-Gov. John Kitzhaber, a Democrat. [1][2][3] The Supreme Court is responsible for choosing the Chief Justice, who serves six year terms. The responsibilities of the position include taking care of administrative responsibilities as well as the financial responsibilities of the state Judicial Department.[4]

Jurisdiction

"The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over the following matters:

  • Direct review of circuit court decisions in death penalty cases certain labor law injunctions
  • Direct review from decisions of the Oregon Tax Court
  • Discretionary review of Court of Appeals decisions and certified questions from the Court of Appeals
  • Direct review of certain agency proceedings, including prison siting decisions, energy Facility Siting Council decisions, and certain solid waste disposal site selection decisions
  • Direct but discretionary review of certified questions of law from a federal court or court of another state
  • Original proceedings (court has discretion whether to hear a particular case), including mandamus; habeas corpus; quo warranto; challenges to ballot titles, explanatory statements, and statements of fiscal impact; and, reapportionment review (every ten years)
  • Practice of law proceedings—admissions to the practice of law, and disciplinary proceedings to reprimand, suspend, or disbar attorneys after trial by the Disciplinary Board
  • Judicial fitness and disability—disciplinary proceedings to censure, suspend, or remove of a judge after investigation and recommendation of the Commission on Judicial Fitness and disability"[5]

Judicial selection

State court judges serve six-year terms and run for nonpartisan election. In the case of a vacancy, the Governor may fill the seat with an appointment. To keep that position, the appointed person must run for election for a full six-year term at the next general election.

Judicial selection measures fail

In November 2002, voters in Oregon were presented with two measures on the selection of judges to increase accountability. The first measure "would have given voters a "none of the above" option when voting for judges and would have required mid-term judicial appointees to run for election at the next available election, rather than at the next general election." The second measure would have had appellate judges elected from geographic districts.[6]

Qualifications

Justices on the Oregon Supreme Court serve in terms of six years.[7] The mandatory retirement age in Oregon is 75. To be a qualified candidate to the court, he must be a United States citizen, a resident of Oregon at least three years before the election or appointment, and must be admitted to practice law in the Oregon Supreme Court.[8]

Removal of justices

A judge may be removed if he is convicted of a felony or a "crime involving moral turpitude," misconduct in office, a failure to perform the duties of the bench, is incompetent to perform those duties, has violated a rule of judicial conduct, or is consistently drunk or uses drugs.

Salaries

The Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court earns $128,556 annually, while associate justices earn $125,688, as of January 2010.[9][10]

Notable decisions

History of the court

The Oregon Supreme Court Building in Salem, Oregon

Oregon has four types of courts, which include the trial and appellate courts, the municipal courts, federal courts, and the tribal courts.[11] In addition to the different types of courts, the state is divided into 36 counties and 27 judicial districts.[12]

See also

External links

References

2012

See also: Oregon judicial elections, 2012
To organize the columns, click on the arrows in the column heading.
CandidateIncumbencyPositionPrimary VoteElection Vote
BrewerDavid V. Brewer   ApprovedANoPosition 299.34%ApprovedA   ApprovedA
CookNena Cook    NoPosition 340.05%ApprovedA48.24%   DefeatedD
BaldwinRichard C. Baldwin   ApprovedANoPosition 333.42%ApprovedA51.02%   ApprovedA
SercombeTimothy Sercombe    NoPosition 326.08% 
LinderVirginia Linder   ApprovedAYesPosition 699.25%ApprovedA   ApprovedA

2010

See also: 2010 State Supreme Court elections

Incumbent Jack Landau faced Allan J. Arlow and was re-elected.

Oregon Supreme Court
2010 General election results
Candidates Votes Percent
Jack Landau BallotCheckMark.png n/a 72%
Allan J. Arlow n/a 18%

Incumbent Rives Kistler ran unopposed and was re-elected.

Oregon Supreme Court
2010 General election results
Candidates Votes Percent
Rives Kistler BallotCheckMark.png n/a 98.8%

2008

See also: State Supreme Court elections, 2008

Thomas Balmer ran unopposed and was re-elected.

Oregon Supreme Court
2008 General election results
Candidates Votes Percent
Thomas Balmer BallotCheckMark.png n/a n/a

Martha Lee Walters ran unopposed and was re-elected.

Oregon Supreme Court
2008 General election results
Candidates Votes Percent
Martha Lee Walters BallotCheckMark.png n/a n/a

OregonOregon Supreme CourtOregon Court of AppealsOregon Circuit CourtsOregon Tax CourtOregon County CourtsOregon Justice CourtsOregon Municipal CourtsUnited States District Court for the District of OregonUnited States bankruptcy court, District of OregonUnited States Court of Appeals for the Ninth CircuitOregon countiesOregon judicial newsOregon judicial electionsJudicial selection in OregonOregonTemplate.jpg


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