Des Moines, June 30, 2017 —Today is the last day of the 2016-17 Iowa Supreme Court adjudicative term. During the term, 117 cases were submitted to the court. The court decided 116 cases by written opinions and held one case over for resubmission next term.
Jacob Lee Schmidt v. State of Iowa, case number 15-1408, is held over for additional briefing and resubmission. All of the remaining cases submitted to the court are complete, and the opinions can be read on the Iowa Judicial Branch website at http://www.iowacourts.gov/About_the_Courts/Supreme_Court/Supreme_Court_Opinions/Opinions_Archive/ . The oral arguments from the term can be watched on the Iowa Judicial Branch YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCL6EU7W8kqDKnKPUzMdxr_g .
The supreme court will begin its administrative term July 3, 2017. The court may schedule oral arguments for attorney ethics cases during the administrative term if necessary. Also during the administrative term, the court will continue to consider and dispose of applications for further review. From July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, the court examined and resolved 842 such applications with an additional 67 currently under consideration. Oral arguments for all other cases will resume after September 1, 2017, when the 2017-18 adjudicative term begins.
During the administrative term, the supreme court will focus on the operations of the judicial branch. The supreme court also regulates the practice of law in Iowa through its authority to admit persons to practice as attorneys in the courts of Iowa, to prescribe rules to supervise attorney conduct, and to discipline attorneys. It is the responsibility of the court to approve rules of procedure and practice used throughout the state courts in Iowa. The court also has supervisory control over the judicial branch and over all judicial officers and court employees.
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