Tag: State courts
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice expresses misgivings about judicial deference
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice David N. Wecht on July 21 issued a concurring opinion in Crown Castle NG East LLC and Pennsylvania-CLE LLC v. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission expressing what they called “deep and broad misgivings” about the court’s practice of deferring to state agency interpretations of statutes and regulations. The case challenged the Pennsylvania…
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Maine Supreme Judicial Court rules that ballot initiative to reverse certification for transnational transmission line project is unconstitutional
On August 13, the Maine Supreme Court blocked from the ballot a citizen initiative designed to reverse a certificate required for a transnational transmission line project. The court ruled that the measure violated the “procedural prerequisites for a direct initiative” found in the Maine Constitution. According to the Supreme Judicial Court, the Maine Constitution “requires…
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New Mexico Supreme Court rules Governor Lujan Grisham may fine businesses for violating public health orders
On August 4, 2020, the New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the governor may legally fine businesses that violate the New Mexico Public Health Emergency Response Act. The case came to the supreme court after several businesses filed suit in the 9th Judicial District in Curry County. The state Republican Party helped organize the…
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Maine Supreme Judicial Court hears arguments about the role of ballot referenda in overturning state administrative agency decisions
On August 5, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court heard oral arguments in a case about whether voters may use the ballot referendum process to reverse actions taken by a state administrative agency. At issue is a ballot referendum set to appear on the November 2020 ballot that would overturn a state agency decision giving a…
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DeSantis appoints judge, attorney to Florida Court of Appeals
On July 29, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R ) filled two vacancies on the Florida Second District Court of Appeal. The court is one of five intermediate appellate courts in Florida. Intermediate appellate courts serve as an intermediate step between the trial courts and the courts of last resort in a state. The Florida District…
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Davis joins Tennessee Court of Appeals after delayed confirmation
Over 60 days after Gov. Bill Lee (R) appointed Kristi Davis to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Davis was confirmed and sworn into office. She resigned from her position on the state’s Sixth Circuit Court on July 31 and assumed office on the appellate court on August 3. Davis fills the vacancy created by the…
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Taylor leaves Wisconsin Legislature, replaces Karofsky on Dane County Circuit Court
Rep. Chris Taylor (D) resigned from the Wisconsin State Assembly on August 1 to be sworn in as the new Branch 12 judge on the Dane County Circuit Court that same day. Taylor fills the vacancy created by Jill Karofsky’s election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Karofsky left the circuit court to be sworn in…
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Wisconsin Supreme Court justice to be sworn in during ultramarathon
Jill Karofsky, who won election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court on April 7 of this year, will be sworn in while running an ultramarathon race on Saturday. She plans to stop at mile 35 of a 100-mile race for a socially-distanced ceremony over which Justice Rebecca F. Dallet will preside. Karofsky defeated incumbent Daniel Kelly…
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Texas Court of Appeals judge killed in accident
Appellate judge David Bridges (R), who sat in Place 1 on the Texas Fifth District Court of Appeals, was killed on July 25 when an individual driving under the influence of alcohol hit Bridges as he was driving on the freeway. Bridges had served on the court since 1996. Bridges was running for re-election to…
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Texas Supreme Court Justice Green to retire in August
Texas Supreme Court Justice Paul Green is retiring on August 31, 2020. Green joined the court in 2005 after winning election to the position on November 2, 2004. Before that, he served for 10 years as a justice on the Texas Fourth District Court of Appeals, taking the bench after being elected in 1994. He…