Alabama Court of the Judiciary


The Alabama Court of the Judiciary is a court within the judicial branch of the United States state of Alabama. It has the power to try judicial officers in other state courts and punish them for violation of judicial ethics, misconduct, dereliction of duty, or incapacitation.
The Court is convoked to hear complaints of the state Judicial Inquiry Commission.
The Court is composed of the following:
Prior to 2005, the Lieutenant Governor of Alabama was able to pick one of the three nonlegal members.
Following the results of a trial, the judge in question may, if they wish, appeal to the Supreme Court of Alabama.

Relationship with impeachment

As is typical with most state legislatures, supreme court justices in Alabama can be impeached. However, Amendment 580 to the state constitution places the Court of the Judiciary at a higher priority than legislative action—e.g. a judge cannot be impeached while being tried by the Court, and should a prosecution in the Court fail, the legislature may not proffer an impeachment for the same reasons.