Alabama Legal Overview: Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman The Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman metro area in Alabama, also known as the Greater Birmingham area, is comprised of eight counties. Each county has one circuit court as the main trial court with general jurisdiction, and one district court with limited jurisdiction over misdemeanors and preliminary hearings in felony prosecutions. Every city also has a municipal court for local ordinance violations. Apart from the three primary cities, the Greater Birmingham area has 17 other cities and suburbs with populations in excess of 10,000.
Top Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman cities for Legal Issues: Birmingham
1. Birmingham is the county seat for Jefferson County. The main trial court with general jurisdiction for the Birmingham and Bessemer divisions is the 10th judicial circuit court. The city of Hoover spans both Jefferson and Shelby counties, so Hoover's original jurisdiction cases and appeals from its municipal court or may end up in either Jefferson's 10th circuit court or the 18th circuit court in Shelby County. Cullman is the county seat of Cullman County, served by the 32nd judicial circuit and district courts. 2. A 17-year-old teen has filed a personal injury lawsuit against the Birmingham Police Department, alleging that police officers had beaten him up when a flight broke out outside the Boutwell Auditorium. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and asks the court to expunge the teen's record. 3. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Bennett came down sharply on how Jefferson County can use revenue generated from its sewer system. The county had filed for a landmark $4.2 billion bankruptcy claim in November last year.
Trending Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman Legal Topics: Circuit court appeals from the 10th, 18th and 32nd circuits can be taken further up to the Alabama civil or criminal courts of appeals, and then to the Alabama Supreme Court. All attorneys practicing law in the Greater Birmingham area must be licensed to practice law in Alabama and become members of the Alabama State Bar (ASB), which has over 13,900 members. Many are also members of the Birmingham Bar Association (BBA), which was incorporated on April 15, 1885 as a voluntary organization. The BBA now has more than 4,000 members. |