The Tennessee Supreme Court, which in turn is empowered to appoint the state’s attorney general, is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the General Assembly.
The Tennessee Supreme Court is currently made up of justices Jeffrey S. Bivins, Sarah K. Campbell, Holly Kirby, Sharon G. Lee, and Roger A. Page.
Bivins took office on July 16, 2014 and was appointed by Governor Bill Haslam. Campbell took office in 2022 and was appointed by Governor Bill Lee. Kirby took office in September 2014 and is a Haslam appointee. Lee was appointed by Governor Phil Bredesen in 2008. Page, the sitting chief justice, was appointed by Haslam and took office in 2016.
Tennessee Supreme Court justices serve eight-year terms. Justices are allowed to succeed themselves; that is, they are not limited to one eight-year term.
Similar to the mayor or senior member of some city councils or local county legislative bodies in certain states, the position of chief justice rotates among the members of the body.
The current system for selecting the justices was not always in place.
Originally, justices of the Tennessee Supreme Court were selected by the Tennessee General Assembly, a lifetime appointment.
In 1853, the state constitution was amended and set judicial terms in the state to eight years. Even with the other changes that were subsequently made, that length of term has remained in effect ever since. Supreme court justices under that amendment were elected by the voters. If a vacancy arose, the governor could appoint a justice who then had to run for re-election during the next Tennessee general election.
In 1971, that changed. Justices were appointed by the governor with the general public only having the option to vote yes or no on the appointment.
That was changed in 1974 and then changed back in 1994.
The current system of appointment came into existence in 2014. Article VI of the Tennessee Constitution describes the process.
Section 3. Judges of the Supreme Court or any intermediate appellate court shall be appointed for a full term or to fill a vacancy by and at the discretion of the governor; shall be confirmed by the Legislature; and thereafter, shall be elected in a retention election by the qualified voters of the state. Confirmation by default occurs if the Legislature fails to reject an appointee within sixty calendar days of either the date of appointment, if made during the annual legislative session, or the convening date of the next annual legislative session, if made out of session. The Legislature is authorized to prescribe such provisions as may be necessary to carry out Sections two and three of this article. Every judge of the Supreme Court shall be thirty-five years of age, and shall before his election, have been a resident of the state for five years. His term of service shall be eight years.
The five justices who serve on the Tennessee Supreme Court are selected by the governor and the General Assembly must confirm them.
At the end of an eight-year term, the justices must face what is called a retention election. That is, the public has the option of voting yes or no.
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Aaron Gulbransen is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]. Follow Aaron on GETTR, Twitter, and Parler.
Photo “Bill Lee” by Gov. Bill Lee. Background Photo “Tennessee Supreme Court” by Thomas R Machnitzki. CC BY 3.0.
