In honor of Constitution Day, the Nebraska Court of Appeals will convene Sept. 10 on the campus of Concordia University in Seward.

The Court of Appeals will divide into its customary two panels with three judges each to hold arguments at 9:30 a.m. and again at 1:30 p.m. at the Thom Leadership Education Center Auditorium, 212 College Ave.

“As a Nebraska university, we are honored to have the Nebraska Court of Appeals on campus,” said Concordia President Brian Friedrich. “This is a valuable learning opportunity for our students, area high school students, and community members to seeing firsthand how our judicial system works. As we honor Constitution Day, we are pleased to be a part of making this experience available.”

The Court of Appeals will hear several cases during both the morning and afternoon sessions, followed by a question and answer session with students. Students will be given detailed descriptions of each case to help them follow the arguments.

Concordia University students, along with government and social studies classes from area high schools, are invited to attend. Reporters, including student journalists, also are encouraged to participate and ask questions.

This college campus initiative, designed by judges of the Court of Appeals, is intended to provide Nebraskans the opportunity to learn about the judicial branch.

The Court of Appeals of Nebraska is the state’s second-highest court and reviews appeals from state trial court decisions. A decision of the Nebraska Court of Appeals is final unless a party is granted further review by the Nebraska Supreme Court.

The six judges on the Court of Appeals handle about 1,000 appeals per year, of which approximately 400 result in published or memorandum opinions.

The sessions are free and open to the public, and visitors are encouraged to attend.

For information on audio recording of oral argument sessions at Concordia, or about the Court of Appeals traveling oral arguments, contact Janet Bancroft at janet.bancroft@nebraska.gov.

Constitution Day CLE Coming to Concordia University

The Nebraska State Bar Foundation will hold its annual free continuing legal education event at Concordia University in Seward on Monday, Sept. 9, in recognition of Constitution Day.

The event will focus on Meyer v. Nebraska and its ongoing relevance 100 years after the statute at issue – prohibiting the teaching of grade school children in any modern language other than English – was adopted by the Nebraska Legislature. The U.S. Supreme Court declared the state law unconstitutional in 1923.

The seminar will include a welcome from Nebraska Court of Appeals Chief Judge Frankie Moore and a review of the case by Judge Rachel Daugherty and John Hink, an associate professor of history at the university.

Professors Sara Houston and Kevin Ruser will offer constitutional and immigration perspectives, and Kurth Brashear, the university’s general counsel, will conduct a Q & A session.

The CLE will run 4 to 5 p.m. in the Dunklau Center for Science, Math and Business. Registration is limited to 95 people, and the deadline to register is Sept. 3.

To sign up, visit nebarfnd.org.

– Scott Stewart