Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

name and by the authority of the State of Missouri, be signed by the Governor, sealed with the Great Seal of the State of Missouri, and attested by the Secretary of State.

Sec. 24. The officers named in this article shall receive for their services a salary to be established by law, which shall not be increased or diminished during their official terms; and they shall not, after the expiration of the terms of those in office at the adoption of this Constitution, receive to their own use any fees, costs, perquisites of office, or other compensation. All fees that may hereafter be payable by law for any service performed by any officer provided for in this article shall be paid in advance into the State treasury.

Sec. 25. Contested elections of Governor and Lieutenant-Governor shall be decided by a joint vote of both houses of the General Assembly, in such manner as may be provided by law; and contested elections of Secretary of State, State Auditor, State Treasurer, Attorney-General and Superintendent of Public Schools shall be decided before such tribunal and in such manner as may be provided by law.

ARTICLE VI.

Judicial Department.

Section 1. The judicial power of the State, as to matters of law and equity, except as in this Constitution otherwise pro·vided, shall be vested in a Supreme court, the St. Louis court of appeals, circuit courts, criminal courts, probate courts, county courts, and municipal corporation courts.

Sec. 2. The Supreme court, except in cases otherwise directed by this Constitution, shall have appellate jurisdiction only, which shall be co-extensive with the State, under the restrictions and limitations in this Constitution provided.

Sec. 3. The Supreme court shall have a general superintending control over all inferior courts. It shall have power to issue writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, quo warranto, certiorari, and other original remedial writs, and to hear and determine the same.

Sec. 4. The judges of the Supreme court shall hold office for the term of ten years. The judge oldest in commission shall be Chief Justice of the court; and, if there be more than one commission of the same date, the court may select the Chief Justice from the judges holding the same.

Sec. 5. The Supreme court shall consist of five judges, any three of whom shall constitute a quorum; and said judges shall be conservators of the peace throughout the State, and shall be elected by the qualified voters thereof.

Sec. 6. The judges of the Supreme court shall be citizens of the United States, not less than thirty years old, and shall have been citizens of this State for five years next preceding their election or appointment, and shall be learned in the law.

Sec. 7. The full terms of the judges of the Supreme court shall commence on the first day of January next ensuing their election, and those elected to fill any vacancy shall also enter upon the discharge of their duties on the first day of January next ensuing such election. Those appointed shall enter upon the discharge of their duties as soon as qualified.

Sec. 8. The present judges of the Supreme court shall remain in office until the expiration of their respective terms of office. To fill their places as their terms expire, one judge shall be elected at the general election in eighteen hundred and seventysix, and one every two years thereafter.

Sec. 9. The Supreme court shall be held at the seat of government at such times as may be prescribed by law; and until otherwise directed by law, the terms of said court shall commence on the third Tuesday in October and April of each year.

Sec. 10. The State shall provide a suitable court-room at the seat of government, in which the Supreme court shall hold its sessions; also a clerk's office, furnished offices for the judges. and the use of the State library.

Sec. 11. If, in any cause pending in the Supreme court or the St. Louis court of appeals, the judges sitting shall be equally divided in opinion, no judgment shall be entered therein based on such division; but the parties to the cause may agree upon some person, learned in the law, to act as special judge in the cause, who shall therein sit with the court, and give decision in the same manner and with the same effect as one of the judges. If the parties cannot agree upon a special judge, the court shall appoint one.

Sec. 12. There is hereby established in the city of St. Louis an appellate court, to be known as the "St. Louis court of appeals," the jurisdiction of which shall be co-extensive with the city of St. Louis and the counties of St. Louis, St. Charles, Lincoln and Warren. Said court shall have power to issue writs

of habeas corpus, quo warranto, mandamus, certiorari, and other original remedial writs, and to hear and determine the same, and shall have a superintending control over all inferior courts of record in said counties. Appeals shall lie from the decisions of the St. Louis court of appeals to the Supreme court, and writs of error may issue from the Supreme court to said court in the following cases only: In all cases where the amount in dispute, exclusive of costs, exceeds the sum of two thousand five hundred dollars; in cases involving the construction of the Constitution of the United States or of this State; in cases where the validity of a treaty or statute of or authority exercised under the United States is drawn in question; in cases involving the construction of the revenue laws of this State, or the title to any office under this State; in cases involving the title to real estate; in cases where a county or other political subdivision of the State or any State officer is a party, and in all cases of felony.

Sec. 13. The St. Louis court of appeals shall consist of three judges, to be elected by the qualified voters of the city of St. Louis, and the counties of St. Louis, St. Charles, Lincoln and Warren, who shall hold their offices for the period of twelve years. They shall be residents of the district composed of said counties, shall possess the same qualifications as judges of the Supreme court, and each shall receive the same compensation as is now, or may be, provided by law for the judges of the circuit court of St. Louis county, and be paid from the same sources: Provided, that each of said counties shall pay its proportional part of the same, according to its taxable property.

Sec. 14. The judges of said court shall be conservators of the peace throughout said counties. Any two of said judges shall constitute a quoroum. There shall be two terms of said court to be held each year, on the first Monday of March and October, and the first term of said court shall be held on the first Monday in January, 1876.

Sec. 15. The opinions of said court shall be in writing, and shall be filed in the cases in which they shall be respectively made, and become parts of their record; and all laws relating to the practice in the Supreme court shall apply to this court, so far as the same may be applicable.

Sec. 16. At the first general election held in said city and counties after the adoption of this Constitution, three judges of said court shall be elected, who shall determine by lot the

duration of their several terms of office, which shall be respectively, four, eight and twelve years, and certify the result to the Secretary of State; and every four years thereafter one judge of said court shall be elected, to hold office for the term of twelve years. The term of office of such judges shall begin on the first Monday in January next ensuing their election. The judge having the oldest license to practice law in this State shall be the presiding judge of said court.

Sec. 17. Upon the adoption of this Constitution the Governor shall appoint three judges for said court, who shall hold their offices until the first Monday of January, eighteen hundred and seventy-seven, and until their successors shall be duly qualified.

Sec. 18. The clerk of the Supreme court at St. Louis shall be the clerk of the St. Louis court of appeals until the expiration of the term for which he was appointed clerk of the Supreme court, and until his successor shall be duly qualified.

Sec. 19. All cases which may be pending in the Supreme court at St. Louis at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, which by its terms would come within the final appellate jurisdiction of the St. Louis court of appeals, shall be certified and transferred to the St. Louis court of appeals, to be heard and determined by said court.

Sec. 20. All cases coming to said court by appeal or writ of error shall be triable at the expiration of fifteen days from the filing of the transcript in the office of the clerk of said court.

Sec. 21. Upon the adoption of this Constitution, and after the close of the next regular terms of the Supreme court at St. Louis and St. Joseph, as now established by law, the office of the clerk of the Supreme court at St. Louis and St. Joseph shall be vacated, and said clerks shall transmit to the clerk of the Supreme court at Jefferson City all the books, records, documents, transcripts and papers belonging to their respective offices, except those required by section nineteen of this article to be turned over to the St. Louis court of appeals; and said records, documents, transcripts and papers shall become part of the records, documents, transcripts and papers of said Supreme court at Jefferson city, and said court shall hear and determine all the cases thus transferred as other cases.

Sec. 22. The circuit court shall have jurisdiction over all criminal cases not otherwise provided for by law, exclusive original jurisdiction in all civil cases not otherwise provided for,

and such concurrent jurisdiction with and appellate jurisdiction from inferior tribunals and justices of the peace as is or may be provided by law. It shall hold its terms at such times and places in each county as may be by law directed; but at least two terms shall be held every year in each county.

Sec. 23. The circuit court shall exercise a superintending control over criminal courts, probate courts, county courts, municipal corporation courts, justices of the peace, and all inferior tribunals in each county in their respective circuits.

Sec. 24. The State, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, shall be divided into convenient circuits of contiguous counties, in each of which circuits one circuit judge shall be elected; and such circuits may be changed, enlarged, diminished or abolished, from time to time, as public convenience may require; and whenever a circuit shall be abolished, the office of the judge of such circuit shall cease.

Sec. 25. The judges of the circuit courts shall be elected by the qualified voters of each circuit; shall hold their offices for the term of six years, and shall reside in and be conservators of the peace within their respective circuits.

Sec. 26. No person shall be eligible to the office of judge of the circuit court who shall not have attained the age of thirty years, been a citizen of the United States five years, a qualified voter of this State for three years, and who shall not be a resident of the circuit in which he may be elected or appointed.

Sec. 27. The circuit court of St. Louis county shall be composed of five judges, and such additional number as the General Assembly may, from time to time, provide. Each of said judges shall sit separately for the trial of causes and the transaction of business in special term. The judges of said circuit court may sit in general term, for the purpose of making rules of court, and for the transaction of such other business as may be provided by law, at such time as they may determine; but shall have no power to review any order, decision or proceeding of the court in special term. The St. Louis court of appeals shall have exclusive jurisdiction of all appeals from and writs of error to the circuit courts of St. Charles, Lincoln and Warren counties, and the circuit court of St. Louis county, in special term, and all courts of record having criminal jurisdiction in said counties.

Sec. 28. In any circuit composed of a single county, the General Assembly may, from time to time, provide for one or more

« ZurückWeiter »