Iowa Supreme Court

History

In 1846, Iowa became the 29th state to join the United States. Following the constitution of the federal government, the powers of the government in Iowa were divided into the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch. In the judicial branch, the Iowa General Assembly divided the state into four judicial districts, and Supreme Court justices were to serve six year terms, while district judges were elected for five year terms. The Iowa Constitution of 1857 increased the judicial districts from four to 11, and allowed the General Assembly to reorganize districts after 1860 and every four years thereafter.

Functions

The Iowa Supreme Court is an appellate court. An appellate court reviews decisions of trial courts in which appeals have been allowed. An appellate court does not preside over trials. Appellate court hearings do not involve witnesses, juries, new evidence, or court reporters. Instead, an appellate court reviews the written record of the trial court to determine whether any significant legal errors occurred. The Rules of Appellate Procedure list the requirements for filing an appeal.

The seven-member Iowa Supreme Court has many important responsibilities.

Justices

Justices are appointed by the governor from a list of nominees submitted by the State Judicial Nominating Commission. A justice serves an initial term of office that is one year after appointment and until January 1 following the next judicial retention election after expiration of such year. The regular term of office of justices retained at election is eight years. A justice must retire upon reaching the age of 72. The justices elect the chief justice.

Mark Cady is the current Chief Justice on the Court.

The Court had three vacancies following the defeat of three justices in the November 2, 2010, retention election. Those vacancies were filled in February 2011 by the appointments of Edward Mansfield, Thomas D. Waterman, and Bruce Zager. In March 2011, the Court voted for Justice Cady to continue as Chief Justice.

Notable decisions

The first decision by the Iowa Supreme Court freed a black slave named Ralph in 1858. The US Supreme Court could have followed the Iowa reasoning in the Dred Scott decision, but did not. http://ir.uiowa.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7490&context=annals-of-iowa.

Clark v. The Board of Directors

In 1868, the Iowa Supreme Court decided Clark v Board of School Directors, ruling that racially segregated “separate but equal” schools had no place in Iowa, 86 years before the U.S. Supreme Court reached the same decision.

Arabella A. Mansfield

In 1869, Iowa became the first state in the union to admit women to the practice of law, with the Court ruling that women may not be denied the right to practice law in Iowa and admitting Arabella A. Mansfield to the practice of law.

Coger v. The North Western Union Packet Co.

The Court heard Coger v. The North Western Union Packet Co. in 1873, ruling against racial discrimination in public accommodations 91 years before the U.S. Supreme Court reached the same decision.

Varnum v. Brien

On April 3, 2009, in Varnum v. Brien, the Iowa Supreme Court unanimously struck down a statutory same-sex marriage ban as unconstitutional, joining the highest judicial bodies of Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, and Hawaii as the fifth court to rule for the right of same-sex marriage under the state constitution. At the next judicial retention election in 2010, voters removed all three justices facing reelection. It was the first time any Iowa Supreme Court justice had been removed by voters. Chief Justice Marsha Ternus, Justice Michael Streit, and Justice David L. Baker each received support from 45% or less of voters.