The Oregon Court of Appeals is the state 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 ...
in the US state of
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
. Part of the Oregon Judicial Department, it has thirteen judges and is located in Salem. Except for death penalty cases, which are reserved to the
Oregon Supreme Court
The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.tax court cases, it has jurisdiction to hear all civil and criminal appeals from
Oregon circuit courts
Oregon's circuit courts are general jurisdiction trial courts of the U.S. state of Oregon. These courts hear civil and criminal court cases.
The state has 27 circuit court districts, most of which correspond to the boundaries of Oregon's 36 cou ...
, and to review actions of most state administrative agencies. The 13 judges of the court are chosen by the people in statewide
nonpartisan
Nonpartisanism is a lack of affiliation with, and a lack of bias towards, a political party.
While an Oxford English Dictionary definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., in most cases, nonpartisan refers sp ...
elections to six-year terms, and have as their administrative head a Chief Judge appointed from their number by the Chief Justice of the state Supreme Court.
Appeals court decisions are subject to a petition by an aggrieved party for review by the Oregon Supreme Court. The petition must be made within 35 days of the decision, and the Supreme Court determines by vote of the Justices whether to review the case. The court holds session at the Oregon Supreme Court Building in Salem, with offices in the neighboring Justice Building.
History
Established in 1969, the court originally had five seats before expanding to ten seats in 1977. Also in 1977, the court's jurisdiction was expanded to include almost appeals. Prior to the expansion, it could only hear appeals to criminal, domestic relations, and some juvenile matters, as well as reviews of actions by state agencies. The
Oregon Legislature
The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper and lower house: the Senate, whose 30 members are elected to serve four-year terms; and the ...
has debated adding additional judgeships in both 2011 and 2012. Three seats were added in 2013 to bring the total to thirteen. The Oregon Court of Appeals is one of the busiest appellate courts in the country, handling between 3,200 and 4,100 cases annually during a recent ten-year period.
List of Oregon judges
This is a list of Oregon judges that have served within the confines of the United States in the state of Oregon, as well as people from Oregon that have served in federal courts outside of the state. These include judges that served prior to stat ...
Court of Appeals
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 ...