RG 055 Supreme Court and Court of Appeals

The Territorial Supreme Court of Iowa was organized on November 28, 1838, with justices appointed by the president and with appellate jurisdiction over all causes. When Iowa became a state on December 28, 1846; the states constitution provided for the creation of a State Supreme Court. In addition to the powers and duties of the territorial court, the new court was given the duty of reporting to the legislature all omissions, discrepancies, or other evident imperfections of the law. In 1976, the Court of Appeals was created as an intermediate court of appeal. The Supreme Court decides which cases it will hear and which cases will be transferred to the Court of Appeals. The following is a partial list of the records of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals records in our holdings. A complete list of record series is included in the Preliminary Guide to the Records of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals available Research Center in Des Moines.