HB1832

House Bill 1832 seeks to amend the Rules of the Arkansas Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, as well as the Arkansas Code, to establish the Court of Appeals as the court of exclusive original jurisdiction for 'facial constitutional challenges.' A facial constitutional challenge is defined as a case where a party seeks to have a legislative act, a provision of the Arkansas Code, or an administrative rule declared unconstitutional in all of its applications. Under the bill, these cases would be initiated in the Court of Appeals rather than the circuit court, and the procedure would conform to bench trials. Decisions made by the Court of Appeals in these matters would be subject to appeal to the Arkansas Supreme Court. The bill also makes various technical amendments to appellate rules and specifies that it will take effect on November 1, 2025.