§ 12-17-20 — Number of Judges in Each Circuit

Alabama § 12-17-20

• Jurisdiction: Alabama
• Title 12: Courts
• Ch. 17: Circuit and District Court Personnel
• Art. 2: Circuit Court Judges
• Div. 1: General Provisions

Text

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, each judicial circuit of the state shall have one resident circuit judge.
(b) In the following judicial circuits, there shall be the number of resident circuit judges listed below:
(1) There shall be two circuit judges in the first judicial circuit. The judge occupying judgeship No. 1 shall be the presiding judge.
(2) There shall be three circuit judges in the fourth judicial circuit.
(3) There shall be three circuit judges in the fifth judicial circuit.
(4) There shall be seven circuit judges in the sixth judicial circuit.
(5) There shall be five circuit judges in the seventh judicial circuit.
(6) There shall be three circuit judges in the eighth judicial circuit.
(7) There shall be three circuit judges in the ninth judicial circuit.
(8) There shall be 26 circuit judges in the tenth judicial circuit. The judge occupying judgeship No. 23 shall serve the Birmingham domestic relations division, and the judges occupying judgeship Nos. 21, 22, and 24 shall serve the Birmingham civil division. The judge occupying judgeship No. 25 shall serve the Bessemer cut-off division. The judges occupying judgeship Nos. 26 and 27 shall serve in the Criminal Division of Jefferson County, Birmingham Division. Judgeship No. 14 has been reallocated and will not be refilled.
(9) There shall be four circuit judges in the eleventh judicial circuit.
(10) There shall be three circuit judges in the twelfth judicial circuit.
(11) There shall be eleven circuit judges in the thirteenth judicial circuit.
(12) There shall be three circuit judges in the fourteenth judicial circuit.
(13) There shall be nine circuit judges in the fifteenth judicial circuit. At least two judges shall be assigned to the criminal division of said circuit, and one or more judges shall be assigned to the civil division, in the discretion of the presiding judge. The judge occupying judgeship No. 7 shall serve the family court division of said circuit.
(14) There shall be four circuit judges in the sixteenth judicial circuit.
(15) There shall be four circuit judges in the eighteenth judicial circuit.
(16) There shall be five circuit judges in the nineteenth judicial circuit. The judge occupying judgeship No. 1 shall be a resident of Elmore County, the judge occupying judgeship No. 2 shall be a resident of Autauga County, and the judge occupying judgeship No. 3 shall be a resident of Chilton County. A person qualifying as a candidate for election to a judgeship under this subdivision shall be a resident of the county for the judgeship the person seeks for a period of not less than one year prior to the date the person qualifies as a candidate for election to the office and thereafter during his or her tenure in office.
The judge occupying judgeship No. 4 may
reside in any county within the nineteenth judicial circuit and shall be assigned to the domestic relations division of the circuit. The judge occupying judgeship No. 5 may reside in any county within the nineteenth judicial circuit.
(17) There shall be five circuit judges in the twentieth judicial circuit.
(18) There shall be two circuit judges in the twenty-first judicial circuit.
(19) There shall be two circuit judges in the twenty-second judicial circuit.
(20) There shall be nine circuit judges in the twenty-third judicial circuit.
(21) There shall be two circuit judges in the twenty-fifth judicial circuit.
(22) There shall be two circuit judges in the twenty-sixth judicial circuit.
(23) There shall be three circuit judges in the twenty-seventh judicial circuit.
(24) There shall be seven circuit judges in the twenty-eighth judicial circuit.
(25) There shall be two circuit judges in the twenty-ninth judicial circuit.
(26) There shall be two circuit judges in the thirtieth judicial circuit.
(27) There shall be two circuit judges in the thirty-first judicial circuit.
(28) There shall be two circuit judges in the thirty-second judicial circuit.
(29) There shall be two circuit judges in the thirty-third judicial circuit.
(30) There shall be four circuit judges in the thirty-seventh judicial circuit. The judge occupying judgeship Number 3 shall preside over the family court division.
(31) There shall be two circuit judges in the thirty-eighth judicial circuit.
(32) There shall be two circuit judges in the thirty-ninth judicial circuit.

Legislative History

(Acts 1923, No. 367, p. 387; Code 1923, §415; Acts 1927, No. 547, p. 633; Code 1940, T. 17, §67; Acts 1943, No. 120, p. 121; Acts 1947, No. 299, p. 150, §1; Acts 1947, No. 378, p. 270, §2; Acts 1949, No. 355, p. 522; Acts 1949, No. 356, p. 523; Acts 1949, No. 375, p. 547, §1; Acts 1953, No. 526, p. 734, §1; Acts 1953, No. 587, p. 832, §2; Acts 1955, No. 347, p. 796, §1; Acts 1957, No. 579, p. 803, §§1, 6; Acts 1959, No. 395, p. 1021; Acts 1959, No. 647, p. 1562; Acts 1961, No. 873, p. 1370; Acts 1961, Ex. Sess., No. 135, p. 2061, §1; Acts 1961, Ex. Sess., No. 204, p. 2183, §1; Acts 1964, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 43, p. 61; Acts 1964, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 144, p. 210, §§1, 6; Acts 1964, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 207, p. 277, §1; Acts 1964, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 216, p. 298; Acts 1965, No. 458, p. 659; Acts 1965, 2nd Ex. Sess., No. 30, p. 46; Acts 1966, Ex. Sess., No. 32, p. 56; Acts 1966, Ex. Sess., No. 156, p. 182; Acts 1966, Ex. Sess., No. 214, p. 266; Acts 1967, No. 385, p. 972, §1; Acts 1967, No. 674, p. 1499; Acts 1969, No. 429, p. 835; Acts 1969, No. 687, p. 1225; Acts 1969, No. 748, p. 1326; Acts 1969, No. 1063, p. 1984; Acts 1969, No. 1191, p. 2227, §1; Acts 1971, No. 1726, p. 2888; Acts 1971, No. 2253, p. 3627, §1; Acts 1973, No. 814, p. 1259; Acts 1973, No. 1003, p. 1538, §1; Acts 1973, No. 1008, p. 1545, §1; Acts 1973, No. 1010, p. 1548; Acts 1973, No. 1013, p. 1550; Acts 1973, No. 1014, p. 1551; Acts 1973, No. 1017, p. 1553; Acts 1973, No. 1018, p. 1554; Acts 1973, No. 1020, p. 1556, §4; Acts 1973, No. 1060, p. 1748; Acts 1975, No. 520, p. 1166; Acts 1975, No. 521, p. 1168; Acts 1975, No. 1062, p. 2124; Acts 1975, No. 1159, p. 2282; Acts 1975, No. 1174, p. 2305; Acts 1975, No. 1177, p. 2308; Acts 1975, No. 1221, p. 2546; Acts 1975, No. 1247, p. 2614; Acts 1975, No. 1248, p. 2615; Acts 1977, No. 767, p. 1325; Acts 1977, No. 804, p. 1386; Acts 1978, No. 543, p. 607, §1; Acts 1979, No. 79-692, p. 1234, §4; Acts 1980, No. 80-197, p. 271; Acts 1981, No. 81-628, p. 1043; Acts 1984, No. 84-610, p. 1244, §5; Acts 1985, No. 85-546, p. 795, §2; Acts 1989, No. 89-955, p. 1883, §§2, 3, 6; Acts 1990, No. 90-294, p. 402, §1; Acts 1990, No. 90-474, p. 694, §1; Acts 1990, No. 90-539, p. 843, §1; Acts 1991, No. 91-640, p. 1210, §§1, 2; Acts 1993, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 93-882, p. 148, §1; Acts 1995, No. 95-255, p. 427, §1; Acts 1995, No. 95-776, p. 1848, §§1-6; Acts 1996, No. 96-751, p. 1322, §1; Acts 1997, No. 97-407, p. 667, §1; Act 2000-765, p. 1752, §§2, 3; Act 2006-385, p. 984, §1; Act 2008-82, p. 106, §1; Act 2009-761, p. 2307, §1; Act 2010-688, p. 1673, §1; Act 2016-69, p. 94; §1; Act 2023-315, §1; Act 2023-178, §1(b)(1).)