ARTICLE III: THE HONOR COURT

Section 1. The judicial power of the Student Bar Association shall be vested in one law school Honor Court, consisting of three law student Justices, elected by the Senate, and three law faculty Justices. The Court shall select its own Chief Justice, who shall be a law student.

1. To ensure the independent role it exercises within the constitutional system of the Student Bar Association, a law student Justice shall not hold any other elected office within the Student Bar Association, nor shall he or she have received disciplinary sanctions while a law student prior to his or her election to the Honor Court.
2. The Senate shall accept open nominations for the law student Justices from any Senator or Officer during a session of the Senate held not later than the third week of September.
3. The three nominations for law student Justice attaining the highest number of votes cast, by secret ballot, within the Senate shall be elected to the Honor Court.
4. In the event of a tie vote for a law student Justice of the Honor Court, a second secret ballot election shall determine the outcome. The individual with the highest number of votes cast within the Senate in this second election shall be elected to the Honor Court.
5. All law student Justices of the Honor Court shall be given an oath of office prior to assuming office.

Section 2. The Honor Court shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction in all cases in which a law student is charged with a violation of the Model Code of Professional Responsibility, the University code of conduct, and/or the law school code of conduct, with such exceptions as the Senate and the governing body of the law school faculty may jointly establish.

Section 3. The law student Justices of the Honor Court, as a special division of the Honor Court, shall also have original and exclusive jurisdiction over cases and controversies brought before the Honor Court which require interpretation of this Constitution and questions arising under it. Such actions before the Honor Court shall be of right, and the Honor Court's decisions shall be final and binding on the Student Bar Association and all elements thereof.

Section 4. The Honor Court shall have the power to determine the rules of its proceedings. However, in exercising its disciplinary power, the Honor Court shall be bound by the rules of procedure and substantive disciplinary standards contained in the law student code of conduct, as appearing in the current official law school student handbook or its successor document, as well as by the general standards of justice and fairness that exist within the self-discipline of members of the legal profession.