How the Student Supreme Court uses its jurisdiction to rule on campus issues

The UNC Student Supreme Court, established in 1966, is the branch of student government that acts as a last resort for all student body disputes. 

SSC Chief Justice Nathaniel Shue said the SSC ensures student government actions align with the University’s constitutional principles and handles issues within and about registered student organizations, non-discrimination policy complaints and student constitutional interpretation. 

Graduate Student Justice Andrew Gary said that most of the Court’s complaints are related to the UNC Constitution,  the Student Code, Undergraduate General Statues and the Code of the Graduate and Professional Student Government.

“If there is some kind of violation of the law, violation of the rights students have under the Constitution or just someone feels as though they’ve been generally treated unfairly, they can bring a complaint to the Court, and we will hear the complaint,” Gary said. 

The Student Supreme Court consists of three undergraduate justices and two graduate or professional student justices, Shue said. Members are nominated by either the Student Body President or the Graduate and Professional Student Government President. The nominees are then confirmed by UNC’s constituency Senate and then by the Joint Governance Council. 

In addition, four students also serve as clerks for the SSC.

Shue said justices usually do, but are not required to, have student government experience prior to joining the SSC. 

He also said the SSC operates ad-hoc, meaning semesters without the Spring General Elections are typically quiet. This semester has been particularly busy, he said, with nine cases having been decided thus far. 

The SSC's six major areas of jurisdiction include summoning defendants to appear before the Court, subpoenaing witnesses or evidence, issuing writs of mandamus, issuing temporary restraining orders, enforcing decisions by mandatory or prohibitory injunction and enforcing decisions by the Honor Code. 

When summoning defendants, Shue said the SSC formally notifies the defendant of a complaint or case against them, requiring them to participate in the court and potentially leading to a hearing or trial. 

When the SSC subpoenas an individual, Shue said they require the person to produce their materials or appear in court to contribute to the final decision-making process.

Failure to respond to a subpoena is a violation of the Honor Code. 

Similarly, Shue said issuing a writ of mandamus requires either an individual or institution within the student government to take a specific action. Earlier in the semester, the SSC used the power to require the UNC Board of Elections to produce documents meant to be public record. 

When the SSC issues a temporary restraining order, Shue said it means the court has found it necessary to temporarily prevent a party from taking a specific action to protect the Court's ability to hear the case. 

“That's just a way of basically freezing the status quo, to say we want to preserve the situation as it currently exists so that nothing changes before we reach a final decision,” Gary said.

Gary said that because this is such a sweeping power, the SSC is wary to file temporary restraining orders. 

Shue said the SSC can also enforce decisions by mandatory or prohibitory injunction, in which they compel or prohibit official student actions. 

The court also ensures student government elections adhere to the Honor Code and other governing documents. 

According to Shue, the number of SSC election-related cases this semester has been nearly unprecedented.

“People always are going to make errors either intentionally or otherwise,” Gary said. “And our job is to find ways of balancing all of these different rights and rules and privileges that people have to produce the most just outcomes for the student body as a whole and for the petitioners before us.”

@dailytarheel | university@dailytarheel.com 

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated that the Student Supreme Court is the oldest branch of student government. This is inaccurate. The article has since been updated.