The Imperial Court is the supreme consistutional court of the Holy Germanian Empire, established in the Consistution of Holy Germanian Empire. The justices, appointed and dismissed by the Emperor of Holy Germania, is part of the supreme judicary of the Empire.
Powers
- Manage government cases and impeachment hearings
- Manage admirality and maritime disputes
- Manage disputes between states, citizens of other states, two or more states, foreign countries and citzens, land disputes, ownership disputes, etc.
- Excrises judicial review, can declare lawa unconsistutional or may change them
- May revoke decisions and hearings of lower courts, supervise them
- Can initate own hearings and execute them, interpets and explains Imperial law
- Handles disputes between companies and organizations
- Regulate judical standards
Tenure
The Consistution says judges serve under "good behavior", which is a sneaky way saying they can serve for the remainder of their lives, unless voulntairy retirng, resigning, or being removed. They also may die in office. 1905 was the only year in which the Senate impeached and removed a member, but the Emperor overuled it.
Size
The Imperial Consistution said nothing about the number of judges, assigining that power to the Senate or to the Emperor. The 1872 Judicary Act and Amendments of 1880 set the number at thriteen. In 1884, this rose to nineteen. In 1900 this was reduced to seven. In 1937, Chancellor Harold von Papen proposed a court reorganization plan that would add six judges to every judge over the age of seventy refusing retirement. In theory, this would reduce the workload on the older and docile judges, but in reality it would gurantee Court apporval of von Papin's legislative programs, which the Court declared unconsistutional. The Senate passed the bill but the Emperor Willhelm II of Holy Germania vetoed and blocked it, saying the Court should not be reorganized for political support, and von Papen was dismissed by the Emperor in May. Today, the number of judges is six, as the Amendments of Review 1971 has set out.