The Alabama Law Institute was created by the Legislature in 1967 to revise and clarify Alabama’s laws, including those that are obsolete.
Statewide Amendment 5 on the ballot next week is a small example of the Alabama Law Institute’s work.
Amendment 5 would remove from the Alabama Constitution a provision that says probate judges have jurisdiction over “orphans’ business.”
The listing of “orphans’ business” as a duty of probate judges is obsolete language, said David Kimberley, deputy director of the Alabama Law Institute. Kimberley said the change would have no practical impact. The amendment came from a recommendation by a committee that proposed changes to Article VI, the judicial article of the constitution.
Sen. Will Barfoot, a Republican from Montgomery, sponsored the bill proposing the amendment. The Senate and House of Representatives passed Barfoot’s bill without a dissenting vote in 2021, putting it on the ballot Tuesday.
Amendment 5 is one of 10 statewide amendments on ballots across Alabama on Tuesday.
Related: Alabama Amendment 1: Aniah’s Law adds charges for which defendants can be held without bail
Alabama amendment 2: Cities, counties could use federal funds for broadband expansion
Amendment 3 on Alabama ballot requires notice before commutation of death sentences
Alabama Amendment 4: No changes in election laws within 6 months of voting
PARCA report analyzes recompiled Alabama Constitution, other proposals on Nov. 8 ballot
Inside the Alabama Constitution of 2022: Voters to see changes on November ballot
