Nebraska Supreme Court
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| Nebraska Supreme Court | |
|---|---|
 State Seal of Nebraska | |
 | |
| Established | 1854 |
| Location | Lincoln, Nebraska |
| Authorized by | Nebraska Constitution |
| Appeals to | Supreme Court of the United States |
| Website | Official Website |
| Chief Justice | |
| Currently | Mike Heavican |
| Since | 2006 |
The Nebraska Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Nebraska. The court consists of a chief justice and six associate justices. Each justice is initially appointed by the governor of Nebraska; using the Missouri Plan, each justice is then subject to a retention vote for additional six-year terms. The six justices each represent a Supreme Court district; the chief justice is appointed (and retained) at-large.
Unlike most other states, with the exception of North Dakota, the Nebraska Supreme Court requires a supermajority of five justices of the seven to rule unconstitutional a legislative provision (the 48 others states require a simple majority).[1]
The court’s justices
Selection of justices
The court consists of a chief justice and six associate justices. The six justices each represent a Supreme Court district. If a position becomes vacant, the judicial nominating commission, made up of four lawyers and four non-lawyers, holds a hearing to select potential candidates. The commission then submits two names to the Nebraska Governor, who then determines the replacing judge. If the Governor does not follow through with this responsibility within 60 days of receiving the nominees, the responsibility then goes to Chief Justice of the state Supreme Court. To retain the office, a judge must run in a retention election in the first general election that occurs after more than three years of serving in the office. Additionally, the judge must run every six years to retain his seat. When a judge runs for retention in office, the question presented on the voters’ ballots states: “Shall Judge___________be retained in office?” If the judge receives less than 50% of the affirmative vote, the judge is not retained. There is no mandatory retirement age for Nebraska judges, but they are granted retirement at age 65 or earlier, if it is due to disability.Supreme Court of Nebraska Courts Guide
Qualifications
Applicants for positions on all levels of Nebraska courts must meet a number of requirements in order to be appointed to office. Each person must be a U.S. citizen, be at least 30 years of age, and have practiced law a minimum of five years in the state of Nebraska. The person must also be currently admitted to practice before the Nebraska Supreme Court. For the Nebraska Judicial Nominating Commission manual, click here.
Current justices
Current members of Nebraska Supreme Court are:
| Name | Elected/Appointed | Term expires | District | Appointing Governor | Appointing Governor's Political Affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice Mike Heavican | October 2006 | January 2017 | – | Dave Heineman | Republican |
| Stephanie F. Stacy | August 2015 | January 2019 | District 1 | Pete Ricketts | Republican |
| Lindsey Miller-Lerman | September 1998 | January 2020 | District 2 | Ben Nelson | Democrat |
| William B. Cassel | April 2012 | January 2017 | District 3 | Dave Heineman | Republican |
| Max J. Kelch | February 2016 | January 2019 | District 4 | Pete Ricketts | Republican |
| William Connolly | December 1994 | January 2017 | District 5 | Ben Nelson | Democrat |
| John Wright | February 1994 | January 2017 | District 6 | Ben Nelson | Democrat |
Chief justice
Mike Heavican is the Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court. He was appointed to the court by Governor Dave Heineman, a Republican, and assumed office as the court's presiding justice on October 2, 2006. He was retained in 2010. The Chief Justice is appointed (and retained) at-large.
Former justices
A list can be found here.
Salaries
As of 2010, the Associate Justices and Chief Justice earn $142,760 annually. National Center for the State Courts, Salary Comparisons, Nebraska
History of the court
1850's to 1970's
Nebraska’s original Supreme Court, referred to as the Territorial Supreme Court, was established following the Kansas-Nebraska Act in May 1854. Fifteen male judges comprised the bench of the Territorial Supreme Court. During the seventy-one years between 1867, when Nebraska became a state, to 1938 a total of thirty-seven judges sat on the Nebraska Supreme Court. The original total of a bench of fifteen was reduced to three. The three Supreme Court judges also served simultaneously as district court judges at the time of Nebraska’s statehood. The Nebraska constitution was then amended in 1908 to include a bench of six associate justices and one chief justice. The chief justice position would be held by the justice with the least amount of time remaining in his term. The judges were originally chosen by partisan election. In 1908 this was later amended to a nonpartisan election. Currently the Nebraska Supreme Court justices are elected by way of a modified Missouri Plan.[2]
In the Nebraska Supreme Court’s early years there were no regulations as to what cases could be appealed and heard by the court. Due to the lack of regulations the Supreme Court’s docket became overloaded. As a solution the Nebraska Supreme Court was allowed to elect commissioners to assist with the workload. Originally three commissioners were elected, one from the Democratic Party, one from the Republican Party, and the last a member of the Populist Party. The three commissioners would serve a term of three years. In 1901 the commissioners numbers increased from three to a total of nine. Six of the nine commissioners would serve a one-year term and three would serve a two-year term. The commissioners sat in groups of three. This resulted in the creation of four appellate courts, the fourth being the Supreme Court. Select District Court justices were allowed to sit on cases heard by the Supreme Court under four stipulations found in Article V, Section 2 of the state’s constitution. If the court was sitting in two separate five judge divisions, if the constitutionality of a statute was in question, an appeal case of a convicted homicide, and lastly when a decision by a division of the Nebraska Supreme Court was under review.[3] ) In 1977 a general guideline pertaining to the format of a court report was drafted and released to the court’s reporters. This guideline would assure that all reports were structured in the same manner. Even with the efforts to increase the time efficiency of the Supreme Court the docket remained over filled. It was proposed to increase the existing bench of seven judges to a bench of nine. The amendment was opposed but revisited later in 1977. It was in this year that the Supreme Court Judges received a salary of 39,750 dollars, an increase from previous years.[4]
Boyd V. Nebraska ex Rel. Thayer
The case Boyd V. Nebraska ex Rel. Thayer was heard by the Supreme Court in 1891. The case was the result of a Gubernatorial Election in which Omaha Democrat James Boyd claimed victory. There were accusations by the Populist party regarding fraudulent votes in the favor of Boyd. John M. Thayer, the existing governor of the state, refused to give up his office. Thayer questioned the legitimacy of Boyd’s citizenship claiming he was not eligible for office. Boyd’s father, an immigrant, obtained citizenship after his son reached the age of majority. Thayer filed a quo warranto in the Nebraska Supreme Court. The court ruled that the father’s citizenship did not apply to Boyd. The Nebraska Supreme Court restored Thayer to office. Boyd appealed after the ruling. The case progressed to the United States Supreme Court. The court ruled that Boyd was a citizen.[5]
Chief Justice Robert G. Simmons
Chief Justice Robert G. Simmons was born in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska in 1891. He attended Hastings college and the University of Nebraska’s College of Law. His early career paths included Scotts Bluff County Attorney, a lieutenant in the army, and was elected to congress as a Republican. On November 8, 1938 Simmons defeated former attorney general C.A. Sorenson and was elected Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court. The Simmons era heard several cases involving capital punishment. The court issued death warrants for four murders. The four death sentence’s method was the electric chair. One of the four executions in the Simmons Era was Charles Starkweather. In 1951 the Simmon’s court heard the case of Drabbels v. Skelly Oil Co. This case addressed the legitimacy of a murder charge in regard to an unborn child. The court unanimously ruled that a child who is still within the womb of the mother has no claim to life. Chief Justice Simmons retired on January 2, 1963 after serving on the bench for slightly over twenty five years. The longest term a chief justice has served in Nebraska’s Supreme Court.[6]
Road to the Supreme Court
There are six different types of courts in Nebraska. The six are the Municipal Courts, County Courts, Workmen’s Courts, District Courts, Juvenile Courts, and the Supreme Court. The lower level includes the County Courts and the Municipal Courts. These two have jurisdiction of misdemeanor cases, the preliminary hearings of felony cases, and civil cases totaling to less than five thousand dollars. The District Court hears felony cases, civil cases totaling to more than five thousand dollars, and appeals from the county and municipal courts. The cases appealed in the District, Workmen’s, and Juvenile courts are then heard by the Nebraska Supreme Court. A case may be appealed in the Nebraska Supreme Court and advanced to the federal level.[7]
Notable cases
- Chicago B. & Q.R. Co. v. Krayenbuhl: Liability
- Meyer v. Nebraska: Due process
- Nebraska Press Assn. v. Stuart: Free speech
References
- ^ http://www.newsweek.com/why-nebraskas-supreme-court-decision-might-be-bad-news-keystone-xl-298205
- ^ Hewitt, J (2007). Slipping Backward: A History of he Nebraska Supreme Court, University of Nebraska Press.
- ^ Hewitt, J (2007). Slipping Backward: A History of he Nebraska Supreme Court, University of Nebraska Press.
- ^ Dunlevey, J. E. (1976). "The Courts of Nebraska: A Report on Their Structure and Operation", Office of the State Court Administrator.
- ^ Hewitt, J (2007). Slipping Backward: A History of he Nebraska Supreme Court, University of Nebraska Press.
- ^ Hewitt, J (2007). Slipping Backward: A History of he Nebraska Supreme Court, University of Nebraska Press.
- ^ Dunlevey, J. E. (1976). "The Courts of Nebraska: A Report on Their Structure and Operation", Office of the State Court Administrator.