Idaho headed toward fourth appellate court justice
Two bills that already have passed the Senate unanimously have now also won near-unanimous support from the House Judiciary Committee. SB 1270 adds a fourth justice to Idaho’s three-member Court of Appeals in 2009, due to skyrocketing caseload. SB 1271 removes the requirement that the state law library be located in the Supreme Court building or the state capitol. The courts plan to move the law library out to make room for the Court of Appeals to be located in the library’s current space, on the first floor of the Supreme Court building. Rep. Phil Hart, R-Athol, cast the only vote against SB 1271, while the committee was unanimous in support of SB 1270. Both bills now need passage in the full House and the governor’s signature to become law.
