Vermont Supreme Court Decisions

Dating from 1777, the Vermont Supreme Court holds the authority to make final decisions in appeals arising from any case in a Vermont court. The Supreme Court also supervises the legal profession in the state, including disciplinary matters for judges and attorneys. It issues rules of procedure for civil, criminal, and family cases, as well as the appellate process. Five justices serve on the Supreme Court, which was ranked as the seventh-most liberal state supreme court in the U.S. in a Stanford University study in 2012.

To serve on the Vermont Supreme Court, a prospective justice must have practiced law in Vermont for more than five of the last 10 years. Vermont imposes a mandatory retirement age of 70 on its justices, so no candidate can be 70 or older. Each justice serves a six-year term. Vermont uses the assisted appointment process to choose justices. This means that the Governor of Vermont reviews a list of candidates and chooses one of them to serve on the Court. Vermont differs from most states with regard to the process of retaining justices. Rather than holding a retention election or a general election, the state requires the legislature to vote on whether a justice should be retained at the end of their term.

A controversial decision by the Supreme Court involved the right to a speedy trial in a criminal case. It overturned a conviction of a defendant who was not tried for nearly three years after he was arrested. The delay resulted from the withdrawals and replacements of several public defenders, often at the defendant’s request. The Supreme Court ruled that the state had violated the defendant’s right to a speedy trial because it had not provided a public defender to represent him in a timely manner. The U.S. Supreme Court reversed this decision, ruling that public defenders work for their clients rather than the state. Delays or gaps in representation caused by the public defender or the defendant do not infringe on the right to a speedy trial.

Browse Opinions From the Vermont Supreme Court

Recent Decisions From the Vermont Supreme Court
Brittany Trayah v. Mercedes Sweetser
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-196
State v. Austin R. Burnett
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-240
State v. Harley Breer, Jr.
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-308
George Woods, Jr. v. Department of Corrections
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-351
Veljovic v. TD Bank, N.A.  
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-352

Justia Opinion Summary: The plaintiff, Aleksandra Veljovic, filed a lawsuit against TD Bank, N.A. and its former employee, Zlata Cavka, alleging negligence, negligent supervision, and respondeat superior. Veljovic claimed that Cavka negligently…

In re Appeal of K.P.
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-357
Suzanne Colvin v. Rhonda Jepson
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-367
Cindy Gaines v. Edmund Gaines, III
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 24-AP-396
Office of the Auditor of Accounts v. Office of the Attorney General  
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Numbers: 24-AP-403, 25-AP-022

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute between Vermont’s Auditor of Accounts and the Attorney General. The Auditor sued the Attorney General, alleging non-compliance with the statutory obligation to provide legal advice. The…

Robert Conway v. Bobbi Jo Belden & Kevin Keefe
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 25-AP-007
Thomas Ferrazza v. North Branch Fire District #1
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 25-AP-008
Kimberly Koontz v. Michael Lowery III
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 25-AP-010
In re James Fredrick  
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 25-AP-012

Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner James Fredrick filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his confinement in Vermont on a governor’s warrant pending extradition to New York for a second-degree murder charge. The superior court denied the…

Allen Pigeon v. Hazen Stone et al.
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 25-AP-018
Jenny Rafuse v. James Rafuse
Date: July 11, 2025
Docket Number: 25-AP-025
The opinions published on Justia State Caselaw are sourced from individual state court sites. These court opinions may not be the official published versions, and you should check your local court rules before citing to them. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site, or the information linked to on the state site.

Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.

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