Indiana Court Records Search
Indiana’s Court of Appeals is distinctly different in that they split the court into two pieces: Indiana Court of Appeals and Indiana Tax Court. The Court of Appeals of Indiana is the second-highest court in the state. These two courts are the intermediate appellate courts for the state. The Court of Appeals has 15 judges spread across five districts, and the Tax Court has one judge with original jurisdiction over tax matters.
Each district has three judges that sit on a panel and review cases from the lower courts. All the judges vote on a Chief Judge per district. The Supreme Court assigns cases to the Court of Appeals. The Tax Court has exclusive jurisdiction on all tax case appeals that come from the Department of State Revenue of the State Board of Tax Commissioners. All cases that are appealed here go directly to the Supreme Court.
Cases that involve the death penalty or life without parole, cases that dispute statutes as being unconstitutional or attorney disciplinary cases all go directly to the Supreme Court not the Court of Appeals. The 15 judges that sit on the Court of Appeals write approximately 2,000 opinions each year.
The Indiana Judiciary Branch website has a lengthy section on the Court of Appeals and Tax Court to provide the public with all the information necessary to navigate the appeals process. It includes filing information, court clerk contact details, recently published opinions, and administrative links.
The Governor appoints the Court of Appeals judges for a two-year term then he or she may be re-elected on a Yes/No ballot vote. If renewed, they serve a 10-year term. However, the Court of Appeals judges must retire at the age of 75.