In
common lawCommon law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals , rather than through legislative statutes or executive action, and to corresponding legal systems that rely on precedential case law....
systems, a
superior court is a
courtA court is a body, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes and dispense civil, criminal, or administrative justice in accordance with rules of law....
of general
competenceCompetence is the ability to perform a specific task, action or function successfully. Incompetence is its opposite.*Competence , the ability of a cell to take up DNA...
which typically has unlimited
jurisdictionJurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility.Alternatively, jurisdiction is the authority given...
with regard to civil and criminal
legal caseA legal case is a dispute between opposing parties resolved by a court, or by some equivalent legal process. A legal case may be either civil or criminal...
s. A superior court is "superior" relative to a court with limited jurisdiction (see
lower courtA lower court is a court from which an appeal may be taken. In relation to an appeal from one court to another, the lower court is the court whose decision is being reviewed, which may be the original trial court or an appellate court lower in rank than the superior court which is hearing the...
), which is restricted to civil cases involving monetary amounts with a specific limit, or criminal cases involving offenses of a less serious nature. A superior court may hear
appealIn law, an appeal is a process for requesting a formal change to an official decision.The specific procedures for appealing, including even whether there is a right of appeal from a particular type of decision, can vary greatly from country to country...
s from lower courts (see
court of appealCourt of Appeals may refer to:An appellate court generally.In Israel:*Military Court of Appeals In the Philippines:*Philippine Court of AppealsIn Turkey:*High Court of Appeals of TurkeyIn the United States of America:...
).
Superior Courts in
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
exist at the provincial and territorial levels.
In
common lawCommon law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals , rather than through legislative statutes or executive action, and to corresponding legal systems that rely on precedential case law....
systems, a
superior court is a
courtA court is a body, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes and dispense civil, criminal, or administrative justice in accordance with rules of law....
of general
competenceCompetence is the ability to perform a specific task, action or function successfully. Incompetence is its opposite.*Competence , the ability of a cell to take up DNA...
which typically has unlimited
jurisdictionJurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility.Alternatively, jurisdiction is the authority given...
with regard to civil and criminal
legal caseA legal case is a dispute between opposing parties resolved by a court, or by some equivalent legal process. A legal case may be either civil or criminal...
s. A superior court is "superior" relative to a court with limited jurisdiction (see
lower courtA lower court is a court from which an appeal may be taken. In relation to an appeal from one court to another, the lower court is the court whose decision is being reviewed, which may be the original trial court or an appellate court lower in rank than the superior court which is hearing the...
), which is restricted to civil cases involving monetary amounts with a specific limit, or criminal cases involving offenses of a less serious nature. A superior court may hear
appealIn law, an appeal is a process for requesting a formal change to an official decision.The specific procedures for appealing, including even whether there is a right of appeal from a particular type of decision, can vary greatly from country to country...
s from lower courts (see
court of appealCourt of Appeals may refer to:An appellate court generally.In Israel:*Military Court of Appeals In the Philippines:*Philippine Court of AppealsIn Turkey:*High Court of Appeals of TurkeyIn the United States of America:...
).
Canada
Superior Courts in
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
exist at the provincial and territorial levels. The superior courts are the courts of first instance for divorce petitions, civil lawsuits involving claims greater than small claims, and criminal prosecutions for "
indictable offenceIn many common law jurisdictions , an indictable offence is an offence which can only be tried on an indictment after a preliminary hearing to determine whether there is a prima facie case to answer or by a grand jury...
s". They also perform a reviewing function for judgements from the local "inferior" courts and administrative decisions by provincial or territorial government entities such as labour boards, human rights tribunals and licensing authorities.
United States
In a number of jurisdictions in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, the Superior Court is a
stateIn the United States, a state court has jurisdiction over disputes with some connection to a U.S. state. Cases are heard before and evidence is presented in a trial court, which is usually located in a courthouse in the county seat...
trial courtA trial court or court of first instance is a court in which trials take place. Such courts are said to have original jurisdiction.A trial court of general jurisdiction is authorized to hear any type of civil or criminal case that is not committed exclusively to another court...
of general jurisdiction with power to hear and decide any civil or criminal action which is not specially designated to be heard in some other court.
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
,
MaineThe State of Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, New Hampshire to the southwest, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is the northernmost portion of...
, the District of Columbia, and
GeorgiaGeorgia is a state in the United States. One of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution, it had been the last of the Thirteen Colonies to be established, in 1733. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January...
are all examples of such jurisdictions. Equivalent courts in other states are variously known as courts of common pleas, (
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
,
OhioOhio is a Midwestern state of the United States. The thirty-fourth largest state by area in the U.S., it is the seventh-most populous with nearly 11.5 million residents...
, and others), circuit courts (
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
,
MichiganMichigan is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Ojibwe term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
,
OregonOregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
and others), district courts (
LouisianaThe State of Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state divided into parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
,
TexasTexas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
,
HawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states, and is the only state made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia. The state was admitted to the Union on August...
and others) or, in the case of
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, supreme courts.
The term "superior court" raises the obvious question of superior to
what. Formerly, many jurisdictions had inferior trial courts of limited jurisdiction such as municipal courts, traffic courts, and justice of the peace courts, so it was natural to call the next level of courts "superior." However, some states, like California, have unified their court systems. In California, all lower courts were absorbed into the
Superior Courts of CaliforniaThe Superior Courts of California are the superior courts in the U.S. state of California with general jurisdiction to hear and decide any civil or criminal action which is not specially designated to be heard in some other court or before a government agency...
after 1998. The lower courts now exist only as mere administrative subdivisions of the superior courts. The superior courts are legally no longer superior to any other trial courts. Thus, the term "superior court" persists in California only as a matter of tradition.
In
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
, the Superior Court is an
appellate courtCourt of Appeals may refer to:An appellate court generally.In Israel:*Military Court of Appeals In the Philippines:*Philippine Court of AppealsIn Turkey:*High Court of Appeals of TurkeyIn the United States of America:...
. In
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
, the
Superior CourtThe Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with state-wide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The Superior Court has three divisions: the Appellate Division is essentially an intermediate appellate court while the Law and Chancery Divisions function as trial courts...
comprises trial courts of general jurisdiction, courts of equity, and an
appellateIn law, an appeal is a process for requesting a formal change to an official decision.The specific procedures for appealing, including even whether there is a right of appeal from a particular type of decision, can vary greatly from country to country...
division.
In the
Confederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a separatist political entity existing between 1861 to 1865, established by eleven southern slave states of the United States of America, each of which had previously declared their secession from the United States...
, their version of the
Supreme Court of the United StatesThe Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate...
was instead referred to in their
ConstitutionA constitution is a set of rules for government—often codified as a written document—that establishes principles of an autonomous political entity. In the case of countries, this term refers specifically to a national constitution defining the fundamental political principles, and establishing the...
as the Superior Court. However, due to issues concerning the Civil War and disagreements on how it should be run, it was not even operative, and instead the State Supreme Courts were used.
In popular culture
- Superior Court was a popular daytime television programme in the 1980s.
External links