ASUCD Court

The ASUCD Court is "the Judicial Authority of the ASUCD" with original jurisdiction over the interpretation of the ASUCD Constitution and bylaws, and appellate jurisdiction over elections matters. Student Judicial Affairs/Campus Judicial Board retains jurisdiction over student misconduct.

The Court consists of nine members, a Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices, serving a term not to exceed four years or their membership in the ASUCD (graduation), whichever comes first. A five-member commission including the ASUCD President nominates Justices whenever a vacancy occurs, and the Senate by majority vote confirms the commission's appointment. The Court meets regularly on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. in Memorial Union, and it schedules hearings on an as needed basis.

The ASUCD Constitution specifies a Court consisting of nine ASUCD members, of which one is appointed Chief Justice by the ASUCD President.

Article Seven, Section 3 of the ASUCD Constitution places the appointment power in a committee consisting of the ASUCD President, Internal Affairs Commission Chair, Elections Committee Chair, and two ASUCD Senators. Once nominated to the Court, the nominee must be approved by a majority vote of the entire Senate, meaning seven votes in favor. Typically, Senate confirmation is not a controversial affair, usually passed by unanimous consent. The seniority of a justice is based on the date of confirmation, with various tie-breakers in the case that multiple nominees are confirmed on the same day.

The Constitution provides that Justices hold their office "for the remainder of their membership in ASUCD, so long as it does not exceed four years." A Justice may only be removed from office by two-thirds vote of the entire Senate (currently 8 Senators). Senate bylaws require that before the Senate may consider removing a Justice, a Senator must request an indictment hearing from the Internal Affairs Commission during a regular Senate meeting, present specific charges of misconduct to the Internal Affairs Commission in closed session, and the Internal Affairs Commission must pass the indictment by two-thirds vote.

Vacancies typically occur when a Justice seeks other office within the Association, losing interest in the position, or graduating. It is rare for a Justice to reach the four year time limit. Because of the high turnover of membership, it would be highly unusual for a Presidential administration to not have a vacancy to fill at some point during one's term. Recently, President Joe Chatham's administration has filled seven vacancies.

There are currently six members on the Court, one more than the needed quorum of five to conduct official business. President Chatham will have chaired the interviewing commission for seven of the nine Justices if the three current nominees, Jeremy Koo, Baldeep Sidhu, and Tigalth Ziyeh are confirmed.

The Chief Justice is always the most senior member of the Court, and the Vice Chief Justice is always second most senior, though the Vice Chief Justice is chosen by vote of the Court. The remaining Associate Justices are ordered by length of service. In the event of Justices being confirmed on the same day, ties are broken by most cases sat on, has fewer absences, and finally has completed more units at UC Davis.

When moderating discussion, the presiding justice is encouraged to call upon more junior members first before more senior members, in reverse of the Supreme Court of the United States' practice, to discourge new justices from simply agreeing with more senior members of the Court.

The Seal of the ASUCD Court is found at the top of Requests for Deliberations on November 4, 2009. The copyright status of this work is undetermined and may be difficult or impossible to determine. The work may be ineligible for copyright. However, if this work is indeed copyrighted, it is believed that the use of this work:

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