New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 1, the Judicial Appeal Process Provided by Law Amendment
A "yes" vote supports this amendment to empower the legislature to pass laws (1) setting the appeals process from probate courts and other inferior courts to higher courts and (2) determining which cases originating in inferior courts and tribunals fall under the appellate jurisdiction of district courts.
A "no" vote opposes this amendment, meaning district courts would continue to have appellate jurisdiction over all cases originating in and appealed from inferior courts.
As of 2018, Article VI of the New Mexico Constitution requires that (1) legal appeals originating in probate courts, municipal courts, magistrate courts, and the Bernalillo Metropolitan Court go to the New Mexico District Courts and (2) districts courts hear all cases that originated in and were appealed from the inferior courts and tribunals. The New Mexico Legislature cannot change this appeals process without the passage of Amendment 1. Amendment 1 would allow the legislature to pass bills, which would require the governor's signature, setting the appeals process from the inferior courts to higher courts and determine what courts and types of cases the district courts would have appellate jurisdiction over. For example, Amendment 1 would allow the legislature to decide that cases in the Bernalillo Metropolitan Court get appealed to the Court of Appeals, rather than a district court. The New Mexico Constitution allows the legislature to set the appellate jurisdiction of the New Mexico Court of Appeals, but not the New Mexico District Courts