The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the final court where legal cases are heard, and it has seven justices. The court is located at the Michigan Hall of Justice, which is at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the state capital.

Operations

Each year, the Court receives about 2,000 new cases. Most of these cases involve people asking the Court to review decisions made by the Michigan Court of Appeals. However, the Supreme Court also handles cases related to attorney misconduct, which is managed through two separate groups: an investigation and prosecution group called the Attorney Grievance Commission, and a decision-making group called the Attorney Discipline Board. The Court also reviews cases about judicial misconduct through the Judicial Tenure Commission. Additionally, the Court handles a small number of cases that it has original jurisdiction over.

In every case it receives, the Court issues a decision in the form of an order or an opinion. These decisions are published in an official document called Michigan Reports and in a privately published document called North Western Reporter by Thomson West.

The Court has other responsibilities, including overseeing the operations of all state trial courts. It works with an agency called the State Court Administrative Office to manage this task. The Court also allows the public to provide feedback on changes to court rules, evidence rules, and other administrative matters. The Court has broad authority to oversee all state courts in Michigan.

Article 6, Section 30 of the Michigan Constitution establishes the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission. This group within the judiciary is responsible for handling complaints about judicial misconduct, improper behavior, or health issues that affect a judge’s ability to serve. The Supreme Court has the authority to decide penalties for such cases, including the removal of judges from their positions.

History

The Michigan Supreme Court began as the Supreme Court of Michigan Territory in 1805. It had three justices who served for indefinite terms. In 1823, the terms of justices were changed to last four years.

The Michigan Supreme Court was the only court created by the first Michigan constitution in 1835. It had three members, each responsible for one of three judicial circuits in Detroit, Ann Arbor, and Kalamazoo. The court needed at least two members to operate, and members were appointed to seven-year terms by the governor with the approval of the senate. In 1838, Justice William A. Fletcher suggested a new plan for the court, which the legislature accepted. This plan added a fourth circuit and increased the number of justices to four, but the quorum remained at two.

In 1848, the court expanded to five justices. The 1850 Michigan constitution required justices to be elected for six-year terms. In 1858, the Circuit Courts were separated from the Supreme Court, so justices only served on the Michigan Supreme Court. This change reduced the court’s size to four justices, one of whom was the Chief Justice.

In 1887, the court expanded to five justices, each serving ten-year terms. It grew again in 1903 to eight justices with eight-year terms. In 1964, the new state constitution stated that the next justice to leave the court would not be replaced, reducing the court to seven members. This happened when Justice Theodore Souris chose not to run for re-election in 1968, leaving the court with seven members starting January 1, 1969.

Composition

The Supreme Court has seven justices who are elected to serve for eight years. Candidates are chosen by political parties and are listed on a ballot that does not show party names. To be eligible, candidates must be qualified to vote, have been licensed to practice law in Michigan for at least five years, and be under 70 years old when they are elected. The Michigan Constitution allows the Governor to appoint someone to fill a vacancy on the state Supreme Court until the next general election. At that time, the elected person takes over for the rest of the term. Every two years, the justices choose one of their members to serve as Chief Justice.

After the 2012 election, the court had four Republican justices and three Democratic justices, with Robert P. Young Jr. as Chief Justice. In 2013, when Justice Diane Hathaway resigned and David Viviano was appointed, the majority became five Republicans and two Democrats. After the 2018 election, the court returned to a 4–3 Republican majority with the election of Megan Cavanagh.

In 2020, Bridget Mary McCormack was re-elected, and Elizabeth M. Welch was elected for the first time. This gave the Democrats a 4–3 majority starting January 1, 2021. This also made the court majority female for the fourth time in state history. In 2024, Kimberly Thomas was elected to replace retiring Justice David Viviano, increasing the Democratic majority to 5–2 starting January 1, 2025. Later that year, after Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement resigned and Noah Hood was appointed, the Democratic majority grew to 6–1.

The current justices of the Michigan Supreme Court are: