Portal:Oregon/Selected article/6
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The Oregon Supreme Court is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States. The OSC holds court at the Supreme Court building in Salem, Oregon near the capitol building on State Street. Justices of the court serve six year terms upon election, however vacancies are filled by appointments of the Governor of Oregon until the next general election when any qualified candidate may run for the position including the appointee. Tracing its beginnings back to 1841 when Oregon pioneers selected a supreme judge with probate powers, the court has grown from a single judge to its current make up of seven justices. These seven justices then select one member to serve a six-year term as Chief Justice. The court’s Chief Justice is not only responsible for assigning cases to the other justices to write the court’s opinions, but is also the chief executive of the Oregon Judicial Department. Primarily an appeals court, it is also the court of last resort in Oregon. Although most oral arguments before the court are held in the Oregon Supreme Court Building (built in 1914), the court does travel around the state holding sessions in various schools.
