Minnesota Supreme Court
Encyclopedia
The Minnesota Supreme Court is the highest court
in the U.S. state
of Minnesota
and consists of seven members. The court was first assembled as a three-judge panel in 1849 when Minnesota was still a territory
. The first members were lawyer
s from outside of the region who were appointed by President
Zachary Taylor
. The state court system was rearranged in 1858 when Minnesota became a state, and justices are now elected
to six-year terms unless a mid-term vacancy occurs, in which case the governor
appoints a replacement to finish the term. Justices have a mandatory retirement age of 70. Most vacancies occur during a term and are filled by the governor. The most recent election to an open seat on the court was in 1992, when former Minnesota Vikings
player Alan Page
was elected.
Appeal
s from the Minnesota District Courts
went directly to the Supreme Court until the Minnesota Court of Appeals
, an intermediate appellate court
, was created in 1983 to handle most of those cases. The court now considers about 900 appeals per year and the court accepts review in about 1 in eight cases.
Before the Court of Appeals was created the number of cases handled by the Minnesota Supreme Court amounted to about 1800. Certain types of appeals can go directly to the Supreme Court, such as those involving tax
es, first degree murder, and workers' compensation
. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court's chamber of the Minnesota State Capitol
or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center.
Court
A court is a form of tribunal, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law...
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 Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and consists of seven members. The court was first assembled as a three-judge panel in 1849 when Minnesota was still a territory
Minnesota Territory
The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota.-History:...
. The first members were lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
s from outside of the region who were appointed by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
. The state court system was rearranged in 1858 when Minnesota became a state, and justices are now elected
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
to six-year terms unless a mid-term vacancy occurs, in which case the governor
Governor of Minnesota
The Governor of Minnesota is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Minnesota, leading the state's executive branch. Forty different people have been governors of the state, though historically there were also three governors of Minnesota Territory. Alexander Ramsey, the first territorial...
appoints a replacement to finish the term. Justices have a mandatory retirement age of 70. Most vacancies occur during a term and are filled by the governor. The most recent election to an open seat on the court was in 1992, when former Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
player Alan Page
Alan Page
Alan Cedric Page is a justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He graduated from Central Catholic High School in 1963, received his B.A. in political science from the University of Notre Dame in 1967, and received his J.D. from the University of...
was elected.
Appeal
Appeal
An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....
s from the Minnesota District Courts
Minnesota District Courts
The Minnesota District Courts are the state trial courts of general jurisdiction in the U.S. state of Minnesota.The Minnesota Constitution provides that the district court has original jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases and such appellate jurisdiction as may be prescribed by law.Each district...
went directly to the Supreme Court until the Minnesota Court of Appeals
Minnesota Court of Appeals
The Minnesota Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court for the state of Minnesota. It began operating on November 1, 1983. It is housed in the Minnesota Judicial Center in St...
, an intermediate appellate court
Appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...
, was created in 1983 to handle most of those cases. The court now considers about 900 appeals per year and the court accepts review in about 1 in eight cases.
Before the Court of Appeals was created the number of cases handled by the Minnesota Supreme Court amounted to about 1800. Certain types of appeals can go directly to the Supreme Court, such as those involving tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es, first degree murder, and workers' compensation
Workers' compensation
Workers' compensation is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her employer for the tort of negligence...
. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court's chamber of the Minnesota State Capitol
Minnesota State Capitol
The Minnesota State Capitol is located in Minnesota's capital city, Saint Paul, and houses the Minnesota Senate, Minnesota House of Representatives, the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Governor...
or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center.
Current composition
The current members of the Court (as of July 1, 2010) and year they took office are:- Chief Justice Lorie Skjerven GildeaLorie Skjerven GildeaLorie Skjerven Gildea is an attorney and the current Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. She served as an associate justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court from 2006 to 2010, and as a district judge for Hennepin County in the Fourth Judicial District from 2005 to 2006.-Early life and...
(2006)
(became Chief Justice in 2010) - Justice Alan PageAlan PageAlan Cedric Page is a justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He graduated from Central Catholic High School in 1963, received his B.A. in political science from the University of Notre Dame in 1967, and received his J.D. from the University of...
(1993) - Justice Paul H. AndersonPaul H. AndersonPaul H. Anderson is currently an Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, taking office on July 1, 1994. He previously served as Chief Judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals from 1992-1994....
(1994) - Justice Helen M. MeyerHelen M. MeyerHelen M. Meyer is an American lawyer and judge from the state of Minnesota. She currently serves as an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court....
(2002) - Justice G. Barry AndersonG. Barry AndersonGrant Barry Anderson is currently an Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, sworn into office on October 13, 2004...
(2004) - Justice Christopher DietzenChristopher DietzenChristopher Dietzen is an Associate Justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court.Dietzen became a member of the Minnesota Supreme Court in January 2008. He was appointed to the court by Governor Tim Pawlenty after the resignation of Justice Sam Hanson. Prior to this, he served as a judge on the...
(2008) - Justice David Stras (2010)