Appellate Court of Maryland
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The Appellate Court of Maryland is the intermediate
appellate court A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of ...
for the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...
. The Appellate Court of Maryland was created in 1966 in response to the rapidly growing caseload in the
Supreme Court of Maryland The Supreme Court of Maryland is the highest court of the U.S. state of Maryland. Its name was changed on December 14, 2022, from the Maryland Court of Appeals, after a voter-approved change to the state constitution. The court, which is compose ...
. Like the state's highest court, the tribunal meets in the Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal Building in the state capital,
Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...
. The Appellate Court of Maryland originally could hear only criminal cases. However, its jurisdiction has expanded so that it now considers any reviewable judgment, decree, order, or other action of the circuit and orphans’ courts, unless otherwise provided by law. Judges sitting on the Appellate Court of Maryland generally hear and decide cases in panels of three. In some instances, however, all 15 judges may listen to a case, known as an
en banc In law, an en banc session (; French for "in bench"; also known as ''in banc'', ''in banco'' or ''in bank'') is a session in which a case is heard before all the judges of a court (before the entire bench) rather than by one judge or a smaller p ...
hearing. A ballot proposal in the
2022 general election The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2022. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2022 United Nations Security Council election * 2022 national electoral calendar * 2022 local ...
asked Maryland voters whether to change the court's name from the Maryland Court of Special Appeals to the Appellate Court of Maryland. The measure was approved by 74.2% of voters on November 8, 2022. It changed to this name on December 14, 2022.


Judges


Appointment and qualifications

The fifteen judges of the Appellate Court of Maryland are appointed by the
Governor of Maryland The Governor of the State of Maryland is the head of government of Maryland, and is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state and has a broad range of appointive powers ...
with
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
consent. They serve ten-year terms. The Judges of the court are required to be citizens of and qualified voters in Maryland. Prior to their appointment, they must have resided in Maryland for at least five years, and for at least six months in the appellate judicial circuit from which they are appointed. They must be at least thirty years of age at the time of appointment, and must have been admitted to practice law in Maryland. Appointees should be "most distinguished for integrity, wisdom and sound legal knowledge." After initial appointment by the Governor and confirmation by the Senate, members of the court, at the first general election occurring at least one year after their appointment, run for continuance in office on their records without opposition. If the voters reject the retention in office of a judge, or the vote is tied, the office becomes vacant. Otherwise, the incumbent judge is retained in office for a ten-year term. This requirement of voter approval is similar to provisions of the
Missouri Plan The Missouri Plan (originally the Missouri Nonpartisan Court Plan, also known as the merit plan, or some variation) is a method for the selection of judges. It originated in Missouri in 1940 and has been adopted by many states of the United States. ...
, a non-partisan method for selecting judges which is used by 11 states. There are eight at large judges and one judge from each of the state's seven Judicial Circuits; the latter are required to be a resident of his or her respective circuit. The circuits are currently as follows:


Current judges

The current judges on the court are: * Chief Judge E. Gregory Wells, At Large * Judge Christopher B. Kehoe, 1st Appellate Circuit * Judge Douglas R. M. Nazarian, 2nd Appellate Circuit * Judge Kathryn Grill Graeff, 3rd Appellate Circuit * Judge Melanie Marva Shaw Geter, 4th Appellate Circuit * Judge Laura S. Ripken, 5th Appellate Circuit * Judge Michael W. Reed, 6th Appellate Circuit * Judge Rosalyn Tang, 7th Appellate Circuit * Judge Kevin F. Arthur, At Large * Judge Donald E. Beachley, At Large * Judge Stuart R. Berger, At Large * Judge Dan Friedman, At Large * Judge Andrea M. Leahy, At Large * Judge Terrence M. R. Zic, At Large * Judge Anne K. Albright, At Large


See also

*
Courts of Maryland Courts of Maryland include: ;State courts of Maryland *Supreme Court of Maryland ** Appellate Court of Maryland *** Maryland Circuit Courts (8 judicial circuits) **** Maryland District Courts (34 locations in 12 judicial districts) Federal cou ...


References


External links


Homepage for the Appellate Court of Maryland
{{State Intermediate Appellate Courts Maryland state courts State appellate courts of the United States 1966 establishments in Maryland Courts and tribunals established in 1966