LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas’ governor has appointed a Fort Smith judge to fill in for the state Supreme Court’s chief justice in a challenge to a ballot measure that would limit damages awarded in civil lawsuits.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Monday named Sebastian County Circuit Judge Stephen Tabor to serve as a special justice in the case over the proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot. The Supreme Court is considering the appeal of a judge’s decision to disqualify the measure.
Chief Justice Dan Kemp last week recused from hearing the case.
Tabor has served as a circuit judge since 2008.
The proposed constitutional amendment would limit punitive and noneconomic damages awarded in civil lawsuits. It would also give the Legislature control over court rules in the state.
