Justice for a fee
A little-known justice system office keeps the legal system moving, but at a big cost to defendants.
Metro Councilwoman Jennifer Racca and state Rep. C. Denise Marcelle are among about a dozen people running to become justices of the peace, a little-known position that can be lucrative because of fees charged in eviction cases.
Why it matters: Louisiana has more than 200 justices of peace. They are part of a sprawling and expensive local justice system with overlapping layers of administration.
The details: Justices of the peace are state-authorized officials who handle many of the small but consequential matters that keep the civil justice system moving. They can settle disputes involving less than $5,000, collect debts, resolve landlord-tenant disputes, clear titles on vehicles and other movable property, and perform marriage ceremonies.
Follow the money: The state pays each justice of the peace only $5,000 a year. But eviction fees can push their earnings far beyond that salary, and, in some cases, above what state judges make.
State law allows a justice of the peace to charge defendants $120 for each eviction case, plus $20 for every additional defendant. Their courts can receive another $60 to execute an eviction, plus $20 for each additional defendant, according to the Louisiana Illuminator.
That system has allowed some justices of the peace to collect more than $200,000 a year. Steven Sanders, an East Baton Rouge Parish justice of the peace, earned an average of $232,419 a year from 2019 through 2023, making him the parish’s highest-paid justice of the peace during that period, the Illuminator states.
The litigation: Civil rights groups sued last year on behalf of tenants, arguing that allowing justices of the peace to finance their salaries and court budgets through eviction fees creates an unconstitutional financial incentive to rule for landlords. The suit was dismissed in November, when the plaintiff didn't show up for court and couldn't be found.
The bottom line: A job most voters rarely think about can generate substantial income from eviction cases, raising questions about whether justice is being shaped by the fees that fund the court.