Kansas Supreme Court Decisions
Located in Topeka, the Kansas Supreme Court consists of seven justices who serve six-year terms. State law imposes a mandatory retirement age of 70 on each justice, although they can finish an ongoing term if they turn 70 before it ends. To be eligible to serve on the Kansas Supreme Court, a candidate must be at least 30 years old and have actively and continuously practiced law in Kansas for at least 10 years. Under the Kansas Constitution, the Chief Justice of the Court is determined by seniority. In other words, when the current Chief Justice retires, the remaining justice who has served for the longest time on the Court succeeds them automatically.
Rather than electing justices to the Supreme Court, Kansas uses an appointment procedure that is facilitated by a selection commission. Members of the Supreme Court Nominating Commission represent each congressional district in Kansas. The Commission starts the process of selecting a new justice by choosing three candidates to recommend to the Governor of Kansas. The Governor will appoint one of the candidates. A new justice must go through a retention election one year after they are appointed. If they survive the retention election, they can serve a six-year term.
Article 2 of the Kansas Constitution outlines the three methods for removing a justice from the Supreme Court. First, a justice may be removed through an impeachment process if they are found to have engaged in misconduct. The Supreme Court also has the discretion to remove a justice if the commission on judicial qualifications recommends their removal. Finally, the Governor of Kansas has the authority to remove a justice if they become incapacitated.
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Recent Decisions From the Kansas Supreme Court
Date: August 11, 2023
Docket Number: 122156
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed Defendant's conviction for aggravated kidnapping and vacated his sentence for that conviction but affirmed the remainder of his convictions, holding that the State did not present sufficient…
Date: August 11, 2023
Docket Number: 123742
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of a panel of the court of appeals vacating Defendant's conviction for aggravated kidnapping, thus reaffirming that the three-part test fashioned in State v. Buggs, 547 P.2d 720…
Date: August 4, 2023
Docket Number: 122660
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court overruled the holding in State v. Watson, 885 P.2d 1226 (1994) that the State can convict a defendant for attempted aggravated burglary without proving the defendant intended to enter an occupied…
Date: July 21, 2023
Docket Number: 125778
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court answered two certified questions regarding the interplay between an arbitrated award against one set of tortfeasors and a litigated proceeding against another set of tortfeasors in this case concerning…
Date: July 14, 2023
Docket Number: 123190
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court reversing its order suppressing evidence found in the car that Defendant was driving on two separate occasions where law enforcement discovered drugs and other…
Date: July 7, 2023
Docket Number: 123823
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of a panel of the court of appeals reversing the district court's determination that a prescriptive easement existed over land owned by the Galls, holding that the panel erred in…
Date: June 30, 2023
Docket Number: 123063
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals affirming the district court's ruling in this eminent domain case between Tenants and City involving the requirement that a condemning authority provide…
Date: June 30, 2023
Docket Number: 123100
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions for several crimes after he intentionally set a fire that damaged several apartments, holding, among other things, that the Kansas Legislature has defined the unit of…
Date: June 30, 2023
Docket Number: 124064
Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of a panel of the court of appeals reaching the merits of Defendant's appeal of his conviction and sentence, holding that this Court expressly overrules its prior opinion in State…
Date: June 30, 2023
Docket Number: 124116
Justia Opinion Summary: In this action involving a district court's division of Jon Holliday's retirement account in a divorce proceeding with Tamara Holliday the Supreme Court held that Kan. Stat. Ann. 60-2403(c)'s tolling provision prevents a…
