The Louisiana Supreme Court is the highest state court in Louisiana. The Supreme Court of Louisiana and the laws of Louisiana trace back their history to the colonial governments of France and Spain during the early eighteenth century. The Louisiana Supreme Court is composed of seven Justices who are elected for ten-year terms in partisan elections from seven districts. Justices may be removed on the recommendation of the Judiciary Commission, or can be impeached by the Louisiana House of Representatives. Justices can only be removed with a two-thirds vote of the Senate. A qualified candidate for the Supreme Court of Louisiana must be practicing law in the state for at least five years. He/she must have lived in the respective district, circuit, or parish for two years. He/she must not be more than 70 years of age. Since this Court has its judicial roots in the 18th century French and Spanish governments, it has discretionary jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases. Pursuant to Article V, Section 5 of the Louisiana Constitution, the Supreme Court has general supervisory jurisdiction over all other courts.
The Supreme Court has exclusive original jurisdiction of disciplinary proceedings against a member of the bar. The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in civil cases extends to both law and facts. In criminal matters, its appellate jurisdiction extends only to questions of law.
The Supreme Court has appellate jurisdiction if a law or ordinance has been declared unconstitutional or the defendant has been convicted of a capital offense and a penalty of death actually has been imposed. The Supreme Court shall have exclusive appellate jurisdiction to decide criminal appeals where the defendant has been convicted of a felony or a fine exceeding five hundred dollars or imprisonment exceeding six months.
Louisiana Courts Website: http://www.lasc.org/
