The Maine Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the state of
Maine
Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
's judicial system. It is composed of seven justices, who are appointed by the
governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
and confirmed by the
Maine Senate
The Maine Senate is the upper house of the Maine Legislature, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Maine. The Senate currently consists of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the st ...
. Between 1820 and 1839,
justice
In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
s served lifetime appointments with a mandatory retirement age of 70. Starting in 1839, justices have been appointed for seven-year terms, with no limit on the number of terms that they may serve nor a mandatory retirement age.
Known as the Law Court when sitting as an
appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appel ...
, the Supreme Court's other functions include hearing appeals of sentences longer than one year of incarceration, overseeing admission to the
bar and the conduct of its members, and promulgating rules for all the state's courts.
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court is one of the few
state supreme court
In the United States, a state supreme court (known by other names in some states) is the highest court in the state judiciary of a U.S. state. On matters of state law, the judgment of a state supreme court is considered final and binding in ...
s in the United States authorized to issue
advisory opinions
An advisory opinion of a court or other government authority, such as an Electoral Commission, election commission, is a decision or opinion of the body but which is non-binding in law and does not have the effect of adjudicating a specific legal ...
, which it does upon request by the governor or legislature, as set out in the
Maine Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Maine established the "State of Maine" in 1820 and is the fundamental governing document of the state. It consists of a Preamble and ten Articles (divisions), the first of which is a "Declaration of Rights".
Th ...
.
It is also unusual for a state's highest appellate court in that its primary location is not that of the state's capital city,
Augusta, partially because the
Kennebec County Courthouse did not have a courtroom large enough for the Supreme Court's proceedings. The court did meet there from 1830 until 1970, when it permanently moved to the
Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to:
Australia
* Cumberland County, New South Wales
* the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia
Canada
*Cumberland County, Nova Scotia
United Kingdom
* Cumberland, historic county
*Cumberl ...
Courthouse. The renovation of the Kennebec County Courthouse in 2015, which included expansion of the bench in its largest courtroom to permit all seven justices to sit there at the same time, has allowed the court to meet there at least twice a year. It will also continue to meet in
Portland,
Bangor, and at high schools around the state. The new Judicial Center in
Biddeford, scheduled to be completed in early 2023, will also contain a courtroom large enough to permit the court to sit there.
The MSJC is also authorized to rule on the fitness of the
governor of Maine
The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive.
The current governor of Maine is J ...
to serve in office, which it does upon the
secretary of state certifying to the court that the governor is temporarily unable to carry out the duties of that office. The court must then hold a hearing and, if it agrees that the governor is unfit, declare the office of governor temporarily vacant and transfer its duties to the
president of the Maine Senate, who would serve as acting governor. If the secretary of state later certifies to the Supreme Court that the governor is fit to resume office, the court would then decide whether it agrees.
Current justices
There are two active retired justices.
See also
*
Courts of Maine
References
External links
*
Maine Supreme Judicial Court Opinions*
{{authority control
State supreme courts of the United States
Maine state courts
1820 establishments in Maine
Courts and tribunals established in 1820