Civics, pp. 279-281). The courts of Ohio may be classified, first; as state and local courts. The supreme court and the court of appeals and, in a sense, the court of common pleas are state courts, while the superior court of Cincinnati, insolvent courts of Cincinnati and Cleveland, juvenile courts, probate courts, justices' courts and the municipal courts are local. The second classification is constitutional courts and statutory courts. The first, those which are named in the constitution, such as the supreme, appellate, common pleas, probate, and justices' courts; the second, the superior court of Cincinnati, insolvent courts, and municipal courts. In a logical consideration of the progress of a legal adjustment of a controversy the courts should be treated in the following order: justices of the peace, probate, common pleas, appellate, and supreme courts, since this is the course of procedure.

25. Justices' Courts. These courts constitute the judicial branch of the township and are treated under the government of the township (see pp. 31–32).

26. Municipal Courts. Municipal courts have been provided in a number of the larger cities of the state. The number of judges varies from two to five. Their jurisdiction is similar to that of justices of the peace.

27. Probate Court. Each county has a probate court presided over by one judge, who is elected for a term of four years. Whenever ten per cent of the voters, in a county having less than sixty thousand inhabitants, petition the common-pleas judge, the latter is required to submit to the electors of the county the question of combining the probate court with the common pleas, and such courts shall be combined and shall be known as the court

of common pleas, in case a majority of the electors, voting upon the question, vote in favor of the combination. Originally the jurisdiction of the probate court was confined to the administration of estates. If a will had been made conveying the title to property, it would be necessary to prove it, and this was done in the probate court. If a property holder died without making disposition of his property, the probate court would attend to its proper disposition when the matter was referred to it. In recent years the jurisdiction of this court has been greatly enlarged. In matters of probate it has exclusive jurisdiction, and in many other kinds of cases it has concurrent jurisdiction with the court of common pleas.

28. Court of Common Pleas. court under the law, in that it is

This is the most important both local and state. It is local in its geography, each county having one. It is state in the force of its decisions as well as in the breadth of its jurisdiction. Where the business demands it, extra judges are provided. The work of the common-pleas court is treated under the county organization (see pp. 40-45).

29. Court of Appeals. Ohio has eight appellate judicial circuits with three judges in each, who are chosen by the people for a term of six years, one being elected every second year. The constitution requires this court to hold at least one session in each county every year. Most of the courts hold two sessions. Two of the three judges constitute a quorum for holding court. The principal business of this court is reviewing the work of the common-pleas court which comes up on appeal or writ of error. The bulk of its business falls under "appellate jurisdiction." It has

original jurisdiction in: (1) quo warranto- a writ used for the purpose of ousting an official wrongfully attempting to hold an office, which he does not rightfully possess. It

MAP SHOWING APPELLATE JUDICIAL DISTRICTS

is also used to oust a corporation from attempting to exercise powers which it does not possess; (2) habeas corpus --a writ employed to liberate a person wrongfully imprisoned; (3) mandamus a writ employed to compel an

which

officer to perform a certain duty; (4) procedendo orders a case back to the court from which it came, on insufficient grounds; and (5) prohibition - a writ issued to a lower court commanding it to cease entertaining jurisdiction in a case over which it has no control.

The jurisdiction of the court of appeals is final in all cases, except cases involving questions arising under the constitution of the United States or the state, cases of felony, cases of which it has original jurisdiction, and cases of public or great general interest in which the supreme court may direct it to certify its record to that court. All such cases may be carried up to the supreme court for final determination.

30. The Supreme Court. The supreme court consists of a chief justice and six associate judges elected for a term of six years. It has original jurisdiction in quo warranto, habeas corpus, mandamus, procedendo, and prohibition. Its appellate jurisdiction is limited to cases arising under the constitution of the United States and of this state, cases of felony, cases which originated in the court of appeals, and cases of public or great general interest in which it may direct any court of appeals to certify its record to the supreme court. Revisory jurisdiction of the proceedings of administrative officers may be conferred upon it by law.

31. Rank of the Supreme Court. The court holds its regular annual session at Columbus in January. It arranges for special sessions at such times and at such places as appear convenient. The officers of the court are the clerk, who keeps the record and issues writs, the reporter, the librarian, the official stenographer, and, in a sense, the attorneys.

Membership in the supreme court of Ohio is looked upon as a most desirable honor. While it is elective, and therefore subject to short service, many members are continued through a long series of years. The salary cannot be increased or diminished during the term for which the officers are elected. The judges cannot receive any fees or hold any other office while serving on the bench.

32. Statutory Courts. The first of this class is the superior court of Cincinnati, which consists of three judges elected for a term of five years by the electors of Cincinnati. The clerk of the court of common pleas is clerk also of this court. The terms of court are monthly, except for July, August, and September. The jurisdiction extends to cases in which the matter in dispute exceeds the exclusive jurisdiction of the justice of the peace. The statutes enumerate ten classes of cases where the court has original jurisdiction.

33. The Insolvency Court. This court has original and exclusive jurisdiction in cases of assignment, appointment of receivers, injunctions against the collection of taxes, etc. Appeals may be taken from it to the court of appeals. There are two insolvency courts in Ohio, one in Hamilton County and the other in Cuyahoga County.

34. Juvenile Courts. Courts of common pleas, probate courts, and insolvency courts, where established, have jurisdiction in juvenile cases. They designate one of their number as juvenile judge. This court appoints probation officers with the power of sheriff to make arrests, consigns dependent children to the care of various associations, and makes disposition of all neglected children. Children under twelve years of age cannot be committed to jail, and the