Vermont Court Information, Location and Jurisdiction

The legal system in the U.S. State of Vermont is as efficient in the other states of the country. Here, you will find a Vermont court system that follows the federal structure and there is a court system that follows the state legal structure. The following are the various state courts in Vermont:

•    The Supreme Court
•    The Superior Courts
•    The District Courts
•    The Family Courts
•    The Probate Courts
•    The Environmental Courts

Supreme Court

This is the top-most legal authority in the state, with 4 Associate Judges who are headed by a Chief Justice. The state Governor appoints the Chief Justice. Judges here have terms of 6 years. There is a Judicial Retention Committee in Vermont that reviews the performance of a judge and decides whether the person can be retained or not at the end of the term.

Being the court of last resort, the Supreme Court hears appeals from the lower courts in the state.

Superior Courts

Just below the Supreme Court are the Superior Courts in the state. These are trial courts that are present in the 14 counties. This Vermont court has the jurisdiction to hear cases of small claims, civil matters and appeals that come from the Probate Court. http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/GTC/Superior/default.aspx is the website of the state Superior Courts.

District Courts

The District Courts rank just below the Superior Courts of Vermont. There are 14 counties in the state, and each one of them has a District Court. They have the jurisdiction to hear civil as well as criminal cases. http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/GTC/district/default.aspx is the website of the District Courts of Vermont.

This Vermont court can hear the following cases:

•    Cases related to criminal matters
•    Cases related to civil matters
•    Those involving civil suspension
•    Wildlife and fish violations
•    Traffic ticket appeals and violation of municipal ordinances

There are 17 judges in the District Court. Though the District Court is a level below the Superior Court, the judges here can also hear the cases of the Superior Court. Clerks carry out the legal research to help the judges arrive at the correct decision.

Family Courts

Family Courts in the state have the jurisdiction to decide on cases related to the family. This Vermont court is present in the 14 counties of the state which are: Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham and Windsor.

http://www.vermontjudiciary.org/GTC/Family/default.aspx is the website of the state’s Family Court.

Environmental Courts

Environmental Courts are something unique to the state because there are not too many courts in the country like this. It has statewide jurisdiction to hear appeals related to permit decisions for land use, planning and municipal zoning decisions, land use cases of enforcements, and also the Board for Natural Resources enforcement decisions.