The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest

judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

authority of 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 ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The Court consists of a chief justice and four

associate justices Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

; the Court mostly 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 ...

of cases that have been decided by other courts. The Supreme Court justices are appointed by the

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

with confirmation by the

Vermont Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members. Senate districting divides the 30 members into three single-member districts, six two-m ...

. When a judicial vacancy occurs, the judicial nominating board submits to the governor the names of as many persons as it deems qualified for appointment. All Supreme Court justices come up for retention at the same time every six years. The next retention date is March 31, 2023. The Joint Committee on Judicial Retention reviews a justice's performance during the previous term and recommends to the

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly," but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

whether the justice should be retained. The committee consists of four House members appointed by the

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

of the House and four Senate members appointed by the Committee on Committees. After open debate and discussion, the General Assembly votes by secret ballot, with a majority having to vote against reappointment for a justice to be denied another term. In addition to the retention process, any Vermont judge may be removed at any time in one of two ways: (1) Judges may be impeached by a two-thirds vote of the General Assembly and convicted by a two-thirds vote of the Senate, and (2) a Judicial Conduct Board investigates complaints of judicial misconduct or disability and recommends any necessary action to the Supreme Court. Members of the

Judiciary of Vermont The Judiciary of Vermont is the state court system of Vermont, charged with Vermont law. Vermont Constitution The Vermont courts are established in the Vermont Constitution in sections 28-41 (Judiciary Department). The justices of the Vermont Sup ...

must retire at the age of 90. The current chief justice is Paul L. Reiber. Reiber was appointed Associate Justice in October 2003 by Gov.

Jim Douglas James Holley Douglas (born June 21, 1951) is an American politician from the state of Vermont. A Republican, he served the 80th governor of Vermont from 2003 to 2011. On August 27, 2009, Douglas announced that he would not seek re-election fo ...

and then sworn in as the Chief Justice of the Court on December 17, 2004. The Vermont Supreme Court has overall administrative control of the court system and makes administrative and procedural rules for all courts.

Building

The Vermont Supreme Court meets in a granite Beaux Arts-style building in Montpelier, just east of the

Vermont State House The Vermont State House, located in Montpelier, is the state capitol of the U.S. state of Vermont. It is the seat of the Vermont General Assembly. The current Greek Revival structure is the third building on the same site to be used as the Sta ...

and immediately west of The Pavilion Office Building. The building site was the original site of the first Vermont State Building, a three-story wooden colonial Georgian structure, built in 1808 by Sylvanus Baldwin.

Composition

History

The original constitution called for a "

Council of Censors A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

" which provided oversight for the court and its membership. The Council was abolished in 1870. Prominent individuals who have served as Chief Justice include

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

and

United States Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Moses Robinson Moses Robinson (March 22, 1741 – May 26, 1813) was a prominent Vermont political figure. When Vermont was an independent republic, he was its first chief justice and served a one-year term as governor. As governor he superintended the negoti ...

; Senator

Nathaniel Chipman Nathaniel Chipman (November 15, 1752February 13, 1843) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Vermont and Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court. A Yale College graduate and Continental Army veteran of t ...

; Governor and Senator

Isaac Tichenor Isaac Tichenor (February 8, 1754December 11, 1838) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as the third and fifth governor of Vermont and United States Senator from Vermont. Biography Tichenor was born in Newark in the Province of ...

; Governor and Senator Jonathan Robinson; playwright Royall Tyler; Governor Richard Skinner; Senator Dudley Chase; Governor Cornelius P. Van Ness; Senator Samuel Prentiss; Governor

Charles K. Williams Charles Kilbourne Williams (January 24, 1782March 9, 1853) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1834 to 1846 and as 20th governor of Vermont from 1850 to 1852. Biography Williams wa ...

; Governor Stephen Royce; Congressman Luke P. Poland; Congressman Homer Royce; Senator Jonathan Ross; and U.S. District Court Judge Franklin S. Billings Jr.

Olin M. Jeffords Olin Merrill Jeffords (June 8, 1890 – October 10, 1964) was a Vermont attorney and judge who served as chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court. He was the father of Senator Jim Jeffords. Biography Olin M. Jeffords was born in Enosburg Fal ...

, the father of Senator

James M. Jeffords James Merrill Jeffords (May 11, 1934 – August 18, 2014) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a U.S. senator from Vermont. Sworn into the Senate in 1989, he served as a Republican until 2001, when he left the party to become ...

, served as Chief Justice from 1955 to 1958.

References

External links

Vermont Judiciary Home Page

Government of Vermont portal

{{Authority control State supreme courts of the United States Supreme Court Vermont state courts Vermont law 1782 establishments in Vermont Courts and tribunals established in 1782