The Superior Court of Pennsylvania is one of two

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

intermediate

appellate courts 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 ...

(the other being the

Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania is one of Pennsylvania's two intermediate appellate courts. The Commonwealth Court's headquarters is in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with jurisdiction over administrative and civil public law. The Superior ...

). It is based in

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...

Jurisdiction

The Superior Court hears appeals in criminal and most civil cases from the Courts of Common Pleas and on matters involving children and families. Cases are usually heard by panels of three judges sitting in Philadelphia, Harrisburg, or Pittsburgh, but may also be heard ''en banc'' by nine judges. Although different panels of three judges may sit to hear appeals, there is only one Superior Court (that is, Pennsylvania is not divided into appellate territories).

Superior Court Judges

Superior Court judges are elected in statewide elections. The term of a Superior Court Judge is 10 years. After serving 10 years, judges may hold their seats if they win a

retention vote A judicial retention election (or retention referendum) is a periodic process in some jurisdictions whereby a judge is subject to a referendum held at the same time as a general election. The judge is removed from office if a majority of votes are ...

. Voters have the right to retain or reject (vote out of office) Superior Court judges in Pennsylvania. Superior Court judges must retire from active service at the age of 75. They may serve as Senior Judges though, as approved by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Commissioned judges

Senior judges

* Correale Stevens (President Judge Emeritus) * Susan P. Gantman (President Judge Emeritus) * John L. Musmanno * James G. Colins * Dante Pelligrini

References

External links

Superior Court of PennsylvaniaUnified Judicial System of PennsylvaniaSuperior Court JudgesRecent Superior Court of Pennsylvania Cases by Judge and Topic
{{State Intermediate Appellate Courts Pennsylvania state courts