New York Constitution of 1846/Article 6

ARTICLE VI.

Section 1. [Assembly may impeach civil officers.]—The assembly shall have the power of impeachment, by the vote of the majority of all the members elected. The court for the trial of impeachments shall be composed of the president of the senate, the senators, or a major part of them, and the judges of the court of appeals, or the major part of them. On the trial of an impeachment against the governor, the lieutenant governor shall not act as a member of the court. No judicial officer shall exercise his office after he shall have been impeached, until he shall have been acquitted. Before the trial of an impeachment, the members of the court shall take an oath or affirmation, truly and impartially to try the impeachment, according to the evidence; and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two thirds of the members present. Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, or removal from office and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit, under this state; but the party impeached shall be liable to indictment and punishment according to law.

§ 2. [Court of appeals.]—There shall be a court of appeals, composed of eight judges, of whom four shall be elected by the electors of the state for eight years, and four selected from the class of justices of the supreme court having the shortest time to serve. Provision shall be made by law for designating one of the number elected as chief judge, and for selecting such justices of the supreme court, from time to time, and for so classifying those elected, that one shall be elected every second year.

§ 3. [Supreme court.]—There shall be a supreme court, having general jurisdiction in law and equity.

§ 4. [Judicial districts.]—The state shall he divided into eight judicial districts, of which the city of New York shall be one; the others to be bounded by county lines, and to be compact and equal in population, as nearly as may be. There shall be four justices of the supreme court in each district, and as many more in the district composed of the city of New York as may, from time to time, be authorized by law, but not to exceed in the whole such number in proportion to its population as shall be in conformity. with the number of such judges in the residue of the state, in proportion to its population. They shall be classified so that one of the justices of each district shall go out of office at the end of every two years. After the expiration of their terms under such classification, the term of their office shall be eight years.

§ 5. [Legislature may alter jurisdiction and proceedings in law and equity.]—The legislature shall have the same powers to alter and regulate the jurisdiction and proceedings in law and equity as they have heretofore possessed.

§ 6. [General and special term; circuits; oyer and terminer.]—Provision may he made, by law, for designating, from time to time, one or more of the said justices, who is not a judge of the court of appeals, to preside at the general terms of the said court, to be held in the several districts. Any three or more of the said justices, of whom one of the said justices so designated shall always be one, may hold such general terms. Any one or more of the justices may hold special terms, and circuit courts, and any one of them may preside in courts of oyer and terminer in any county.

§ 7. [Compensation of judges.]—The judges of the court of appeals and justices of the supreme court shall severally receive, at stated times, for their services, a compensation, to be established by law, which shall not be increased or diminish1ed during their continuance in office.

§ 8. [Judges to hold no other office.]—They shall not hold any other office or public trust. All votes for either of them for any elective office (except that of justice of the supreme court or judge of the court of appeals) given by the legislature or the people shall be void. They shall not exercise any power of appointment to public office. Any male citizen, of the age of twenty-one years, of good moral character, and who possesses the requisite qualifications of learning and ability, shall be entitled to admission to practice in all the courts of this state.

§ 9. [Legislature to classify judges and fix terms of court.]— The classification of the justices of the supreme court, the times and place of holding the terms of the court of appeals, and of the general and special terms of the supreme court, within the several districts, and the circuit courts and courts of oyer and terminer, within the several counties, shall be provided for by law.

§ 10. [Testimony in equity cases.]—The testimony in equity cases shall be taken in like manner as in cases at law.

§ 11. [Removal of judges.]—Justices of the supreme court and judges of the court of appeals may be removed by concurrent resolution of both houses of the legislature, if two thirds of all the members elected to the assembly and a majority of all the members elected to the senate concur therein. All judicial officers, except those mentioned in this section, and except justices of the peace and judges and justices of inferior courts, not of record, may be removed by the senate on the recommendation of the governor; but no removal shall be made by virtue of this section, unless the cause thereof be entered on the journals, nor unless the party complained of shall have been served with a copy of the complaint against him, and shall have had an opportunity of being heard in his defense. On the question of removal the ayes and noes shall be entered on the journals.

§ 12. [Election of judges.]—The judges of the court of appeals shall be elected by the electors of the state, and the justices of the supreme court by the electors of the several judicial districts, at such times as may be prescribed by law.

§ 13. [Vacancies, how filled.]—In case the office of any judge of the court of appeals or justice of the supreme court shall become vacant before the expiration of the regular term for which he was elected, the vacancy may be filled by appointment by the governor until it shall be supplied at the next general election of judges, when it shall be filled by election, for the residue of the unexpired term.

§ 14. [County judges and surrogates.]—There shall be elected in each of the counties of this state, except the city and county of New York, one county judge, who shall hold his office for four years. He shall hold the county court and perform the duties of the office of surrogate. The county court shall have such jurisdiction, in cases arising in justices' courts, and in special cases, as the legislature may prescribe, but shall have no original civil jurisdiction except in such special cases. The county judge, with two justices of the peace, to be designated according to law, may hold courts of sessions, with such criminal jurisdiction as the legislature shall prescribe, and perform such other duties as may be required by law. The county judge shall receive an annual salary, to be fixed by the board of supervisors, which shall be neither increased nor diminished during his continuance in office. The justices of the peace, for services in courts of sessions, shall be paid a per diem allowance out of the county treasury. In counties having a population exceeding forty thousand, the legislature may provide for the election of a separate officer to perform the duties of the office of surrogate. The legislature may confer equity jurisdiction in special cases upon the county judge. Inferior local courts of civil and criminal jurisdiction may be established by the legislature in cities; and such courts, except for the cities of New York and Buffalo, shall have an uniform organization and jurisdiction in such cities.

§ 15. [Special county judge and surrogate.]—The legislature may, on application of the board of supervisors, provide for the election of local officers, not to exceed two in any county, to discharge the duties of county judge and of surrogate, in cases of their inability, or of a vacancy, and to exercise such other powers in special cases as may be provided by law.

§ 16. [Reorganization of judicial districts.]—The legislature may reorganize the judicial districts at the first session after the return of every enumeration under this Constitution, in the manner provided for in the fourth section of this article, and at no other time; and they may, at such session, increase or diminish the number of districts; but such increase or diminution shall not be more than one district at any one time. Each district shall have four justices of the supreme court; but no diminution of the districts shall have the effect to remove a judge from office.

§ 17. [Justices of the peace.]—The electors of the several towns shall, at their annual town meeting, and in such manner as the legislature may direct, elect justices of the peace, whose term of office shall be four years. In case of an election to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of a full term, they shall hold for the residue of the unexpired term. Their number and classification may be regulated by law. Justices of the peace and judges or justices of inferior courts, not of record, and their clerks, may be removed after due notice, and an opportunity of being heard in their defense by such county, city, or state courts as may be prescribed by law, for causes to be assigned in the order of removal.

§ 18. [Local judicial officers.]—All judicial officers of cities and villages, and all such judicial officers as may be created therein by law, shall be elected at such times and in such manner as the legislature may direct.

§ 19. [Clerk of court of appeals; clerks of supreme court.]— Clerks of the several counties of this state shall be clerks of the supreme court, with such powers and duties as shall be prescribed by law. A clerk of the court of appeals, to be ex-officio clerk of the supreme court, and to keep his office at the seat of government, shall be chosen by the electors of the state; he shall hold his office for three years, and his compensation shall be fixed by law, and paid out of the public treasury.

§ 20. [Fees to judicial officers prohibited.]—No judicial officer, except justices of the peace, shall receive, to his own use, any fees or perquisites of office.

§ 21. [Judgments of inferior courts may be removed to court of appeals.]—The legislature may authorize the judgments, decrees, and decisions of any local inferior court of record, of original civil jurisdiction, established in a city, to be removed, for review, directly into the court of appeals.

§ 22. [Publication of statutes and decisions.]—The legislature shall provide for the speedy publication of all statute laws, and of such judicial decisions as it may deem expedient. And all laws and judicial decisions shall be free for publication by any person.

§ 23. [Tribunals of conciliation.]—Tribunals of conciliation may be established, with such powers and duties as may be prescribed by law; but such tribunals shall have no power to render judgment to be obligatory on the parties, except they voluntarily submit their matters in difference, and agree to abide the judgment, or assent thereto, in the presence of such tribunal, in such cases as shall be prescribed by law.

§ 24. [Commissioners to revise procedure.]—The legislature, at its first session after the adoption of this Constitution, shall provide for the appointment of three commissioners, whose duty it shall be to revise, reform, simplify, and abridge the rules of practice, pleadings, forms and proceedings of the courts of record of this state, and to report thereon to the legislature, subject to their adoption and modification from time to time.

§ 25. [Legislature to organize court of appeals; transfer of business of other courts.]—The legislature, at its first session after the adoption of this Constitution, shall provide for the organization of the court of appeals, and for transferring to it the business pending in the court for the correction of errors, and for the allowance of writs of error and appeals to the court of appeals from the judgments and decrees of the present court of chancery and supreme court, and of the courts that may he organized under this Constitution.