The Oregon Judicial Department (OJD) is the judicial branch of government of the 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 ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The chief executive of the branch is the Chief Justice of 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.Oregon Tax Court The Oregon Tax Court is a state court in the U.S. state of Oregon, which has jurisdiction in questions of law that regard state tax laws. Examples of matters that would come before this court include income taxes, corporate excise taxes, property ...

, the Oregon Court of Appeals, and the

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 ...

. Additionally, the OJD includes the Council on Court Procedures, the

Oregon State Bar The Oregon State Bar Association (OSBA) is a public corporation and instrumentality of the Oregon Judicial Department in the U.S. state of Oregon. Founded in 1890 as the private Oregon Bar Association, it became a public entity in 1935 that regulat ...

, Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability, and the Public Defense Services Commission.About Us.
Oregon Judicial Department. Retrieved on January 25, 2008. Employees of the

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

are the largest non-union group among state workers.

Courts

Oregon’s 1981 Legislature enacted legislation that unified the state courts into the Oregon Judicial Department. The district, circuit, tax, and both appellate courts were combined beginning in 1983. In 1997, the Legislature then combined the district and circuit courts, and in 1998 added a Magistrate Division to the Tax Court. Four courts make up Oregon’s state court system. The highest court is the Oregon Supreme Court, which hears some select direct appeals, but hears

appeals In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

mainly from the Oregon Tax and the Oregon Court of Appeals. The two divisions of the Tax Court provide trial level and appellate level court proceedings with appeals going directly to the Oregon Supreme Court.Oregon Blue Book: Oregon Tax Court.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 25, 2008. The Oregon Circuit Courts are the trial level courts of the state for both criminal and civil proceedings, with the majority of appeals going to the Oregon Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals handle appeals from the Circuit Courts and county courts, with appeals of their decisions going to the Oregon Supreme Court.

Supreme Court

Oregon’s highest state court is the Oregon Supreme Court. The court has seven justices elected statewide to six-year terms. These justices then elect one member to serve a six-year term as Chief Justice. The court hears appeals from the lower state courts, as well as some unique issues such as electoral districting and ballot measure titling. Appeals from the court’s decisions can only go to the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

Court of Appeals

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 Oregon. With some exceptions, it has jurisdiction to hear all civil and criminal appeals from circuit courts, and to review actions of most state administrative agencies. The court consists of ten judges elected statewide in

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. Their administrative head is a Chief Judge appointed by the Chief Justice of the state Supreme Court.

Tax Court

Oregon’s Tax Court has a Magistrate and Regular divisions, with the Magistrate Division consisting of magistrate judges handling cases at the trial level The Regular Division hears appeals from the Magistrate Division. The Tax Court’s jurisdiction includes

exclusive jurisdiction Exclusive jurisdiction exists in civil procedure if one court has the power to adjudicate a case to the exclusion of all other courts. The opposite situation is concurrent jurisdiction (or non-exclusive jurisdiction) in which more than one cour ...

regarding facts and legal questions arising from all tax laws within the state of Oregon. An elected Tax Judge serves as the head of the court.

Circuit Courts

In 1998, the state combined its state District Courts into the Oregon Circuit Courts. These courts are divided into 27 judicial districts across the entire state.Oregon Blue Book: Oregon Circuit Courts.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 25, 2008. The courts are trial level courts with general jurisdiction. Except in six Eastern Oregon counties, the courts have jurisdiction over probate issues, adoptions, guardianship and conservatorships, and juvenile items.

Other

The department’s chief operating officer is the State Court Administrator. Housed in the

Oregon Supreme Court Building The Oregon Supreme Court Building is the home to the Oregon Supreme Court, Oregon Court of Appeals, and the Oregon Judicial Department. Located in the state capitol complex in Salem, it is Oregon's oldest state government building. The three story ...

, their role is to assist the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in supervising and administrating the state courts. Created in 1971, the office also is responsible for keeping a current list of attorneys allowed to practice in the state and coordinating with the Bar for new lawyer admissions. Other divisions operated by the department include indigent defense, the state

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

and rule and procedure making bodies. Oregon’s Public Defense Services Commission provides indigent legal counsel for defendants in Oregon’s court system, including civil and criminal proceedings.Oregon Blue Book: Office of Public Defense Services.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 25, 2008. The Oregon State Bar regulates practicing attorneys in the state including disciplinary matters. The Council on Court Procedures revises the court rules, and the Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability investigates complaints made against judges.

References

External links

Oregon Judicial Department History
{{Authority control Oregon law Judicial Department 1981 establishments in Oregon