State government

State Supreme Court Justice

The Basics

Every state has its own Supreme Court, which is made up of several justices, and in many states justices are elected directly by voters. Your state’s supreme court hears appeals to cases that have come from lower courts all over the state, along with your state’s court of appeals – civil and criminal, on all kinds of topics. In cases where there’s a question about state law, your state’s supreme court has the last word. That gives the justices a lot of power! 

Here are just a few of the things a state supreme court justice might be able to vote on:

State supreme court decisions over abortion bans have been in the news a lot in the last few years, but that’s not the only policy issue your state’s supreme court can weigh in on – pretty much any state law that is legally challenged could potentially be brought to the court’s attention. No matter which issues you care about, state supreme court justices can have an impact.

Because being a judge requires specialized legal knowledge, most states have strict requirements around who can run for these offices. Usually, to run for a judgeship a candidate needs to be a practicing attorney with a minimum number of years of experience; some states require anyone running for a state supreme court seat to have been a judge for a minimum number of years.

The way states choose their state supreme court justices varies a lot. Some states have their governor choose justices initially, then give voters the opportunity to vote on whether to keep the justice on the court or not. This is called a ‘retention election.’ Other states hold more traditional elections with multiple candidates for each office, sometimes with party primaries and sometimes with everyone running at once without party affiliations. Finally, some states allow every voter to vote on every justice, while others break up the state into districts and elect one judge from each district.

Note: Some states name their courts a little differently. In NY, for example, the highest-level court, which serves the same functions as a State Supreme Court, is called the Court of Appeals, and the lowest-level trial courts are called Supreme Courts. A few states have separate high courts for civil and criminal cases. Click on your state to see the specifics for where you live.

How can I make my voice heard?

Democracy works when you do! Learn how to advocate for what you believe in, no matter the office or government agency, with our handy Genius Guides to advocacy.

Source: United States Courts on the differences between federal and state courts. For more details on the importance of state courts, check out these explainers from State Court Report, a project of NYU’s Brennan Center for Justice

What have State Supreme Court Justices done?

The decisions of state supreme courts can reverberate across your state, and even across the country. Here are just a few that have made a big impact:

Case Study: resentencing, clemency power, and the three branches of governmentLink

A state supreme court is part of a state government’s judicial branch, one of the three branches of government (the other two are the executive, which is led by the governor, and the legislative branch, which writes your state’s laws). Sometimes there’s a disagreement over the extent of one branch’s power, and when this happens, a state court has the power to step in.

The Louisiana Supreme Court’s recent decision in Louisiana v. Lee provides a useful example of the tension between the three branches of government. The Louisiana legislature passed a law in 2021, with strong support from the governor, lawmakers, and local prosecutors, creating a formal process for resentencing prisoners who were serving long sentences for relatively minor offenses, or for convictions where the evidence might have been weak. In many cases, long sentences were due to Louisiana’s “three strikes law” that mandated enhanced sentencing for anyone with multiple felony convictions.

The Supreme Court struck down this law in 2023, and described the separation of powers between the three branches of government as the reason. The court argued that if a sentence was reduced using only the process outlined in the law, and not for a specific legal reason (for example, compelling evidence that the person might have been wrongly convicted), the sentence reduction was too similar to an act of clemency – and according to the Louisiana Constitution, clemency is a power that belonged only to the governor, not the legislature. Because the Supreme Court has the final say on questions of state law and the state constitution, they were able to strike the law down despite its passage through the legislature and the governor’s signature, a clear demonstration of the power held by Louisiana’s Supreme Court justices.

Sources: State Court Report; ProPublica

How does it work in my state?

Scroll down and click on your state to learn more about the specifics of a state supreme court justice’s powers and responsibilities where you live. (If your state isn’t here yet, check back often – we’re adding more info all the time. If your state doesn’t elect judges, it won’t appear here.)

LouisianaLink

Term limits: Louisiana doesn’t have term limits for justices, but there is a mandatory retirement age of 70. If a justice turns 70 in the middle of a term, they can finish the term but may not run for reelection. Terms are ten years

Eligibility: to run for a seat on the Louisiana Supreme Court, you must have been a licensed attorney admitted to practice law in Louisiana for at least ten years, and a resident of the district you want to represent for at least one year.

Louisiana is divided into seven Supreme Court districts, and one justice is elected from each district through a top-two system, with candidates running on party lines (as Democrats, Republicans, independents, or third-party members). The justice who has served on the court the longest becomes the Chief Justice. Their major responsibilities are:

  • Hearing appeals of cases from lower courts all over the state
    The Supreme Court doesn’t always have to take a case that’s appealed to them. Justices will review an application, and if four out of seven justices agree, the court hears the case
  • Hearing disciplinary cases against lawyers and judges
    These types of cases go straight to the Supreme Court
  • Reviewing all cases in which someone has been sentenced to death
    Death penalty cases skip the lower courts and go straight to the Supreme Court
  • Reviewing all cases in which a state law has been declared unconstitutional
    This type of case also gets to skip the lower courts, because the Supreme Court is considered the final authority on Louisiana state law
  • Setting the rules for Louisiana’s court system
    The Chief Justice acts as the chief administrative officer of the court system

Sources: the Louisiana Constitution; the Louisiana Supreme Court

North CarolinaLink

Term limits: North Carolina doesn’t have term limits for justices, but there is a mandatory retirement age of 72. Everyone who runs for a judgeship must be under 72 years old, and a sitting judge must retire at the end of the year in which they turn 72, even if the term isn’t over yet. Terms are eight years

Eligibility: to run for any office in North Carolina, you must be at least 21 years old and eligible to vote in the state; all justices must also be attorneys who are licensed to practice law in North Carolina

The North Carolina Supreme Court is made up of seven justices. Justices are all elected statewide (by all North Carolina voters), and whichever justice has served on the court the longest becomes the Chief Justice. A justice’s most important powers and responsibilities are: 

  • Hearing appeals of cases from lower courts all over the state
    Usually, the court can choose whether or not to hear a case. If they decide not to, the previous ruling is final.
  • Exclusive jurisdiction to certain types of appeals
    There are a few types of cases where appeals skip the state Court of Appeals and go straight to the Supreme Court: murder convictions where the death penalty has been imposed, the state Utilities Commission’s decisions on utility rates, and cases heard in the Business Court 
  • “Depublishing” Court of Appeals decisions
    If the Supreme Court decides to do this, it means that the decision still stands and must be followed, but the decision won’t become precedent – this means that judges aren’t allowed to base their rulings in future cases on the depublished decision. This is rare and has sometimes been controversial, because it gives the Supreme Court even more power to shape state law
  • Setting judicial conduct standards for all the state’s judges
    And, hearing cases of alleged misconduct by judges
  • Additional powers for the Chief Justice
    The Chief Justice is the leader of North Carolina’s judicial system, and has some administrative powers. If the governor or lieutenant governor is impeached, the Chief Justice also presides over impeachment hearings in the State Senate

Sources: the North Carolina Constitution, Article IV and Article VI; the North Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 7A

PennsylvaniaLink

Term limits: there are no term limits, but there is a mandatory retirement age, and justices must retire at the end of the year in which they turn 75; terms are ten years

Eligibility: to run for a seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, you must be a U.S. citizen, a member of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court bar (bar membership means the person is an attorney who is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania), and have been a resident of Pennsylvania for at least one year

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has seven justices. When a justice first runs for election, there is a traditional partisan election with multiple candidates running on party lines (as Democrats, Republicans, third party members, or Independents). After a justice has served their first term, they stand for a retention election, and voters are simply asked to choose ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to keeping them on the court. The justice who has served on the court the longest becomes the Chief Justice. 

A justice’s major responsibilities are:

  • Hearing appeals of cases from lower courts all over the state
    In most cases, the Supreme Court can choose whether or not to hear an appeal
  • Intervening in cases of “immediate public importance”
    This power is called “extraordinary jurisdiction,” and it allows the court to get involved in a case it hasn’t been asked to hear in rare and urgent situations
  • Reviewing all cases in which someone has been sentenced to death
    Death penalty cases skip the lower courts and go straight to the Supreme Court
  • Setting and enforcing the rules for Pennsylvania’s court system

Sources: the Pennsylvania Constitution; the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania on the structure of the court system, elections and retention, and extraordinary jurisdiction