Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia

Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
Seal of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
Established	1863; 1872
Location	Charleston, West Virginia
Composition method	Non-partisan election
Authorized by	West Virginia Constitution
Appeals to	Supreme Court of the United States (Federal cases only)
Judge term length	12 years
Number of positions	5
Website	Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
Chief Justice
Currently	Tim Armstead
Since	January 1, 2024
Lead position ends	December 31, 2024
Jurist term ends	2032

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia is the state supreme court of the state of West Virginia, the highest of West Virginia's state courts. The court sits primarily at the West Virginia State Capitol in Charleston, although from 1873 to 1915, it was also required by state law to hold sessions in Charles Town in the state's Eastern Panhandle.^[1] The court also holds special sittings at various locations across the state.

Although the West Virginia Constitution allowed for an intermediate court of appeals to be created, the Legislature declined to do so from 1974 until 2021. Thus, the Supreme Court provided the only review of the decisions of the state's trial courts of general jurisdiction, the West Virginia Circuit Courts, during that period. In December 2010, the Supreme Court promulgated a major revision of West Virginia's rules of appellate procedure, by which it provided that it would hear all properly perfected appeals of right from the circuit courts.^[2] Beginning July 1, 2022 a new intermediate appellate court, the Intermediate Court of Appeals of West Virginia, is in operation, overseeing administrative, family, and civil appellate jurisdiction while criminal cases will continue to only be reviewed by the Supreme Court. ^[3]

Justices are elected to 12-year terms in staggered, statewide, nonpartisan^[4] elections. In years that two seats are up for election, a separate election is held for each seat. Before 2015, the justices of the court were elected in partisan elections; no justices remain from the partisan era.

Pursuant to the West Virginia Code (chapter 51), the Court holds two regular sessions annually with the first session commencing on the second Tuesday in January and the second session commencing on the first Wednesday in September. The Court may also sit in special session as needed.^[5]

Upon the death, resignation, or removal of a sitting justice, Article 8, Section 2 of the West Virginia Constitution permits the Governor to appoint a replacement. An election to fulfill the unexpired term must be held by the next regular general election. Because of the long length of the court's term (12 years), mid-term vacancies are frequent.^[6]