State Courts

Students in some of my courses learn that each state in the United States has its own separate and distinct court system, and these systems are by no means identical. It is up to each state to shape their system as they see fit, with changes being made regularly. One such change just took place in the State of Georgia where the legislature recently passed law adding two more Justices to the Georgia Supreme Court. Of course, expanding the make-up of court can sometimes lead to claims of "court packing" whereby the party in power adds seats in order to control the judicial branch. As the Atlanta Journal Constitution points out, this very claim is being made by some Democrats in Georgia.