Current:Home > MyKentucky Supreme Court strikes down new law giving participants right to change venue -ProsperityStream Academy
Kentucky Supreme Court strikes down new law giving participants right to change venue
View
Date:2025-04-12 11:28:12
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a new state law that allowed participants in constitutional challenges to get the cases switched to randomly selected counties. The court said the legislature’s action on the assignment of court cases encroached on judicial authority.
The law, enacted this year over the governor’s veto, allowed any participants to request changes of venue for civil cases challenging the constitutionality of laws, orders or regulations. It required the clerk of the state Supreme Court to choose another court through a random selection.
Such constitutional cases typically are heard in Franklin County Circuit Court in the capital city of Frankfort. For years, Republican officials have complained about a number of rulings from Franklin circuit judges in high-stakes cases dealing with constitutional issues.
The high court’s ruling was a victory for Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who in his veto message denounced the measure as an “unconstitutional power grab” by the state’s GOP-dominated legislature. Lawmakers overrode the governor’s veto, sparking the legal fight that reached the state’s highest court.
Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s office defended the venue law, which passed as Senate Bill 126. Cameron is challenging Beshear in the Nov. 7 gubernatorial election — one of the nation’s highest-profile campaigns this year.
Writing for the court’s majority, Chief Justice Laurance B. VanMeter said the new law amounted to a violation of constitutional separation of powers.
The measure granted “unchecked power to a litigant to remove a judge from a case under the guise of a “transfer,” circumventing the established recusal process, the chief justice wrote.
“It operates to vest a certain class of litigants with the unfettered right to forum shop, without having to show any bias on the part of the presiding judge, or just cause for removal,” VanMeter said.
The measure also resulted in “divesting the circuit court of its inherent jurisdiction and authority to decide when and if a case should be transferred to another venue,” he said.
Responding to the ruling, Cameron’s office insisted the legislature had acted within its authority.
“The legislature has always had broad authority to decide where lawsuits should be heard,” the attorney general’s office said in a statement. “Today’s opinion backtracks on that established principle and diminishes the power of the people’s branch of government.”
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Robert Conley said the legislature has the constitutional authority to pass legislation “fixing venue and providing for changes of venue.”
“SB126 is new and it is different from what the judiciary is used to,” he wrote. “I deem it unwise, imprudent, inefficient and inexpedient. But I cannot say it is unconstitutional.”
In his March veto message, Beshear said the measure was aimed at one court. The intent, he said, was to “control Kentucky courts and block any civil action alleging a law is unconstitutional from being heard in one circuit court: the Franklin Circuit Court.”
veryGood! (8)
Related
- Mega Millions winning numbers for August 6 drawing: Jackpot climbs to $398 million
- Princess Beatrice Is Pregnant, Expecting Baby No. 2 With Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi
- Police officer fatally shoots man at a home, New Hampshire attorney general says
- Days after Hurricane Helene, a powerless mess remains in the Southeast
- British golfer Charley Hull blames injury, not lack of cigarettes, for poor Olympic start
- Days after Hurricane Helene, a powerless mess remains in the Southeast
- Dating today is a dumpster fire. Here’s a guide to viral toxic terms.
- Boo Buckets are coming back: Fall favorite returns to McDonald's Happy Meals this month
- Chief beer officer for Yard House: A side gig that comes with a daily swig.
- What are enzymes, and what do they have to do with digestion?
Ranking
- Shilo Sanders' bankruptcy case reaches 'impasse' over NIL information for CU star
- Abortion pills will be controlled substances in Louisiana soon. Doctors have concerns
- 'Deep frustration' after cell phone outages persist after Hurricane Helene landfall
- Horoscopes Today, September 29, 2024
- $1 Frostys: Wendy's celebrates end of summer with sweet deal
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs appeals judge's denial of his release from jail on $50 million bond
- 'Deep frustration' after cell phone outages persist after Hurricane Helene landfall
- Maryland announces juvenile justice reforms and launch of commission
Recommendation
The GOP and Kansas’ Democratic governor ousted targeted lawmakers in the state’s primary
Bobby Witt Jr. 'plays the game at a different speed': Royals phenom makes playoff debut
Tallulah Willis Shares “Forever” Memories of Dad Bruce Willis Amid His Health Battle
Sam Schmidt opens paralysis center in Indianapolis to rehabilitate trauma victims
Paige Bueckers vs. Hannah Hidalgo highlights women's basketball games to watch
Boo Buckets are coming back: Fall favorite returns to McDonald's Happy Meals this month
Georgia National Guard starts recovery efforts in Augusta: Video shows debris clearance
Port workers strike at East Coast, Gulf ports sparks fears of inflation and more shortages