The Alabama Judicial System and the Chief Justices of the Supreme Court.

The Alabama Judicial System and the Chief Justices of the Supreme Court.. . 1819 The First Constitution of Alabama (1819), under which the state was admitted to the Union, provided that "until the General Assembly shall otherwise prescribe, the powers of the Supreme Court shall be vested in, and its duties shall be performed by, the judges of the several circuit courts within this state." At that time, the state was divided into five judicial circuits., 1820 On the second Monday in May, the first term of the supreme court was held at Cahaba, then the state capital. Present were judges C.C. Clay, Reuben Saffold, Henry Y. Webb, and Richard Ellis. The circuit judges nominated and appointed C.C. Clay as Chief Justice. Twenty-three opinions were written during this first term. The Justices of the Supreme Court were elected by joint vote of both houses of the General Assembly until 1868. The "Reconstruction" Constitution adopted in 1868 provided that the justices be elected by the people., 1821 A sixth circuit was created. The records show a large number of names familiar to the judicial history of the state. Some of these have left the impress of their thought and character upon the wider field of American law., 1823 Chief Justice Clay resigned in 1823 and was succeeded in that office by Justice Abner S. Lipscomb., 1825 The first regular election was held by the General Assembly under the constitution since the creation of the Supreme Court., 1828 A seventh circuit was established., 1832 The Supreme Court was entirely reorganized and made a separate court, to consist of three justices with terms of office for six years. Justices Lipscomb, Saffold, and Taylor were elected, Justice Lipscomb again receiving the appointment as Chief Justice., 1834 Justice Lipscomb resigned and was succeeded by Justice Henry Hitchcock, Justice Reuben Saffold being promoted to the post of Chief Justice., 1836 Justice Saffold resigned and Justice Hitchcock became Chief Justice., 1837 Justice Hitchcock resigned with Justice A.F. Hopkins being advanced to the Chief Justiceship. In June of the same year, Chief Justice Hopkins resigned, being succeeded by Justice Henry W. Collieras Chief Justice., 1849 Justice Edward S. Dargan succeeded Justice Collieras Chief Justice., 1851 The number of justices was increased to five., 1852 Chief Justice Dargan resigned and was succeeded by Justice William P. Chilton., 1853 The membership of the court was reduced by law to three., 1856 In January, Justice George Goldthwaite succeeded Justice Chilton as Chief Justice, Justice Goldthwaite resigned almost immediately and was succeeded by Justice Samuel F. Riceas Chief Justice., 1859 Justice Rice resigned in January and was succeeded as Chief Justice by A.J. Walker., 1861 The war wrought no change to speak of in the judicial fabric during the existence of actual hostilities., 1868 By the "Reconstruction" Constitution of 1868, the election of judges was committed to the people, and, on an election held, Thomas M. Peters, E.W. Peck, and B.F. Saffold were elected to the court with Peck as Chief Justice., 1873 Justice Peck resigned and Justice Thomas M. Peters became Chief Justice., 1874 At the general election, Justice R.C. Brickell was elected Chief Justice., 1884 Justice Brickell resigned with Justice George W. Stone becoming Chief Justice., 1889 The number of justices was increased to four, and Thomas N. McClellan, then serving as Attorney General, was appointed to the new place., 1891 The number of justices was once more raised to five., 1894 Chief Justice Stone died and Governor Thomas G. Jones appointed Robert C. Brickell Chief Justice., 1898 Thomas N. McClellan was elected Chief Justice., 1903 The legislature increased the number of justices from five to seven, the increase to go into effect after the General Election of 1904., 1904 Thomas N. McClellan was re-elected Chief Justice and Jonathan Haralson, John R. Tyson, James R. Dowdell, R.T. Simpson, John C. Anderson, and N.D. Denson were elected associates. In order to comply with the constitution as to the arrangement of the terms and upon casting lots, Anderson and Denson got six-year terms, Haralson and Simpson four-year terms, and Tyson and Dowdell two-year terms., 1906 Chief Justice Thomas N. McClellan died and Samuel D. Weakley was appointed to succeed him until the next general election., 1907 John R. Tyson was elected Chief Justice., 1909 Chief Justice John R. Tyson resigned and James R. Dowdell was appointed to succeed him., 1914 Chief Justice Dowdell resigned and John C. Anderson became Chief Justice., 1940 Justice Lucien Dunbibben Gardner was elected without opposition to succeed John C. Anderson as Chief Justice. Chief Justice Anderson died April 27, 1940, prior to the expiration of his term, and Justice Lucien D. Gardner was appointed Chief Justice April 30, 1940., 1951 Chief Justice Lucien D. Gardner resigned and was commissioned Supernumerary Justice and Justice J. Ed Livingston was appointed Chief Justice., 1969 Act No. 602 increased the number of associate justices of the Supreme Court to eight, so that the Supreme Court now consists of a Chief Justice and eight associate justices., 1970 Howell Thomas Heflin was elected Chief Justice. When Chief Justice Heflin assumed office on January 19, 1971, Chief Justice Livingston retired and was appointed Supernumerary Justice., 1975 Justice Janie L. Shores became the first woman to serve as a justice on the Alabama Supreme Court., 1977 Chief Justice Heflin retired. He was elected in 1978 to the United States Senate. Chief Justice Heflin was succeeded by Clement Clay "Bo" Torbert, Jr. who had been elected to that position., 1980 Justice Bloodworth retired September 16, 1980, and was succeeded as Associate Justice by Oscar W. Adams, Jr., upon appointment by Governor Fob James. Justice Adams became the first African American Alabama Supreme Court Justice in the state's history and two years later, upon his election to a full term, became the first African American to be elected to statewide office in Alabama., 1989 Chief Justice Torbert decided not to seek re-election in 1988, and his term expired January 16, 1989. In the 1988 General Election, Ernest C. "Sonny" Hornsby was elected Chief Justice to succeed Chief Justice Torbert. Chief Justice Hornsby took office on January 17, 1989., Names in bold served in the Judicial Building., An interesting fact about the composition of the Supreme Court is the nativity of the Chief Justices, Clay, Hopkins, Collier, and Stone were born in Virginia; Lipscomb and Rice in South Carolina; Saffold and Heflin in Georgia; Hitchcock in Vermont; Dargan in North Carolina; Chilton in Kentucky; Goldthwaite in New Hampshire; Walker and Peters in Tennessee; Peck in New York; Brickell, McClellan, Weakley, Tyson, Dowdell, Anderson, Gardner, Livingston, Torbert and Hornsby in Alabama.