From Ballotpedia - Reading time: 7 min
| Local Courts |
|---|
| Trial courts and judges |
| Elections by state |
| Judicial selection by state |
| View courts by state: |
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive election coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population as well as mayoral, city council, and district attorney election coverage in state capitals outside of the 100 largest cities. This page is outside of that coverage scope and does not receive scheduled updates.
The Orphans Court of Harford County resides in Maryland. Click on the links below to learn more about the court's...
This court holds the following jurisdiction:[1]
| “ | The Orphans’ Court presides over the administration of the estates of people who have died — with or without a Will — while owning property in their sole name. In addition, they have jurisdiction to appoint guardians of the person, and to protect the estates of unemancipated minors (minors who remain under parental authority). Three Orphans' Court judges sit in the City of Baltimore and each of Maryland's counties, except Harford, Howard, and Montgomery where circuit court judges sit as Orphans' Court Judges. An appeal from an orphans’ court generally may be to a circuit court, where the matter is tried de novo or “as new” before a judge or, if appropriate, a jury, or to the Appellate Court of Maryland, where the matter is heard “as is” or on the record.[2] | ” |
Judges of the Maryland Orphans' Court are selected in partisan elections (except in the counties of Harford and Montgomery, where circuit court judges are assigned to serve on the orphans' court). They run for re-election every four years.[3]
Maryland is one of eight states that use retention elections to determine whether judges should remain on the bench without using another type of election as an initial selection method. To read more about how states use judicial elections to select judges across the country, click here.
Circuit and orphans' court judges compete in a partisan primary for the Republican and/or Democratic nomination. Candidates may cross-file with both parties. The candidates who receive the most votes from each primary advance to the general election to compete against each other, as well as any minor party or independent candidates.[4][5]
An example of the elections process for the circuit courts provided by the Maryland State Board of Elections:
| “ |
|
” |
| —Maryland State Board of Elections[5] | ||
Appellate judges stand for retention in the general election. Trial court judge candidates who advanced from the partisan primary run in the general election without party affiliation.[6]
Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Maryland • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Maryland
State courts:
Maryland Supreme Court • Appellate Court of Maryland • Maryland District Courts • Maryland Circuit Courts • Maryland Orphans' Court
State resources:
Courts in Maryland • Maryland judicial elections • Judicial selection in Maryland