News: Six new Court of Appeals judgeships – 7/1/2022

July 1, 2022

The Legislature has added six new Court of Appeals judgeships, equally divided between Divisions One and Two, and authorized case transfers between Divisions.

The most recent legislative session ended with a number of changes for the Court of Appeals, including two significant changes from the passage of House Bill 2859. First, the Legislature added three new judgeships for Division One, raising the total number of judges on Division One from sixteen to nineteen.  Of the nineteen judges in Division One, four of the judges are “at-large judges,” meaning that they can be residents of any county in the division.  The Legislature also added three new judgeships for Division Two, increasing the total number of judges on Division Two from six to nine.  Three of the nine seats are at-large judges.

Second, the Legislature provided express statutory authorization for transferring matters between the two divisions “in order to equalize caseloads and for the best use of judicial resources.”  A.R.S. § 12-120(E).