South Carolina Supreme Court
Encyclopedia
The South Carolina Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

. The court is composed of a Chief Justice
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...

 and four Associate Justice
Associate Justice
Associate Justice or Associate Judge is the title for a member of a judicial panel who is not the Chief Justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the United States Supreme Court and some state supreme courts, and for some other courts in Commonwealth...

s.

Selection of Justices

Judges are selected by the legislature of South Carolina to serve terms of ten years. There is no prohibition against justices serving multiple terms on the court. However, there is a mandatory retirement age of 72 for state trial judges and state appellate judges in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

.

Current Justices of the Court

  • Chief Justice
    Chief Justice
    The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...

     Jean H. Toal
    Jean H. Toal
    Jean Hoefer Toal is the first woman and the first Roman Catholic to serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Carolina....

  • Justice Costa Pleicones
  • Justice Donald W. Beatty
  • Justice John W. Kittredge
  • Justice Kaye Gorenflo Hearn

Jurisdiction

The court enjoys both original
Original jurisdiction
The original jurisdiction of a court is the power to hear a case for the first time, as opposed to appellate jurisdiction, when a court has the power to review a lower court's decision.-France:...

 and appellate jurisdiction
Appellate jurisdiction
Appellate jurisdiction is the power of the Supreme Court to review decisions and change outcomes of decisions of lower courts. Most appellate jurisdiction is legislatively created, and may consist of appeals by leave of the appellate court or by right...

. It enjoys exclusive appellate jurisdiction for all state cases regarding the death penalty, state utility rates, judgments involving public bonded indebtedness and elections, and orders limiting state grand juries
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...

 and relating to abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

s by minors. Original jurisdiction pertains to the issuance writ
Writ
In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court...

s including mandamus
Mandamus
A writ of mandamus or mandamus , or sometimes mandate, is the name of one of the prerogative writs in the common law, and is "issued by a superior court to compel a lower court or a government officer to perform mandatory or purely ministerial duties correctly".Mandamus is a judicial remedy which...

, certiorari
Certiorari
Certiorari is a type of writ seeking judicial review, recognized in U.S., Roman, English, Philippine, and other law. Certiorari is the present passive infinitive of the Latin certiorare...

, and extraordinary bills.

Additional Charges of the Court

The South Carolina Supreme Court oversees the admission of individuals to practice law
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in the state. Much of the administration regarding admissions and practice is delegated to the South Carolina Bar
South Carolina Bar
The South Carolina Bar is the integrated bar association of the U.S. state of South Carolina.-Organization:The South Carolina Bar began in 1884 as the South Carolina Bar Association, a professional organization of approximately 200 lawyers; the group was voluntary, with no mandates to join being...

, established by statute as an administrative arm of the court; however, the court retains ultimate authority in South Carolina governing the practice of law. It also supervises the disciplining of attorneys and suspension of those no longer able to practice due to mental or physical condition.

History

The South Carolina Supreme Court building is located in the state capital of Columbia
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...

. The court moved into its current location, a former United States Post Office building, in 1971. The building has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 since 1972. Prior to 1971, the court met in a section of the South Carolina State House in an area totaling approximately 1400 square feet (130.1 m²); the justices did not have individual offices, but instead met in a common conference room when not presiding over a session of court.

From 1930 to 2009, the South Carolina Supreme Court has had 16 Chief Justices, including the state's first female Chief Justice, Jean H. Toal.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK