With a two-sentence addition to the statute describing the court rulemaking process, Connecticut’s legislature is proposing to challenge the state’s Judicial Branch assertion that it has the final say in setting court rules.
The provision, passed unanimously April 13 by the legislative Judiciary Committee, would effectively overturn the 1974 Connecticut Supreme Court case of State v. Clemente, which held that the legislature can’t make procedural rules for the courts without violating the constitutional separation of powers doctrine.
