h voters will decide on May 16 whether older judges should get more time on the bench.
Under current law, judges cannot run for reelection after they turn 70, though they may serve out their terms. If passed, Constitutional Amendment 5, which will appear on the May ballot, would raise the mandatory retirement age to 75.
“As a lawyer, I can tell you that there’s a benefit to having a person on the bench who has the requisite life experience and also the requisite experience in the practice of law,” said state Rep. Kyle Green, D-Marrero, who sponsored a bill last year to put Amendment 5 on the ballot. “The public benefits from it.”
Terms for h judges typically range from 6 to 10 years, depending on which office they hold.
Mandatory retirement is meant to protect the public from judges who face cognitive decline as they age, but Green argued there is already a mechanism to remove judges who are no longer fit to serve due to cognitive impairments: the Judiciary Commission can take them off the bench.
He said many judges continue to serve in ad hoc positions after they age out of the system. The h Supreme Court appoints those judges.
But opponents argue that it is better to err on the side of caution when it comes to setting a retirement age because of how much power judges hold.
“They’ve got the power of freedom or no freedom over people,” state Rep. Robby Carter, D-Greensburg, said last year during a House floor debate on the amendment. “The job is so important that we need to make sure people don’t have cloudy minds who are serving as judge.”
The legislation that put Amendment 5 on this year’s ballot, Act 219 of 2025’s regular legislative session, was co-sponsored by Jason Hughes, a former state representative who now serves on the New Orleans City Council.
The vote on the amendment comes as the judiciary takes heat from some state officials, including Gov. Jeff Landry. He has repeatedly linked crime to what he says is too much leniency from judges, and he recently dug into that stance after a mass shooting at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge.
Landry made “judicial accountability” a centerpiece of his agenda during the current legislative session. Senate Bill 123 by state Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, would allow the Legislature to remove judges for “incompetence;” critics say it is overly broad and would make judges too beholden to state lawmakers.
SB123 passed the Senate and needs approval from the House & Governmental Affairs Committee before it can move forward.
Asked whether he thought ongoing criticism of the judiciary would impact the vote on the constitutional amendment, Green was skeptical.
“I don’t believe the public is exhibiting anger towards judges,” he said. “It’s a select few in the Legislature or in state government who are expressing anger towards judges.”
Amendment 5 is one of five constitutional amendments that is on the ballot this election cycle. Election Day is May 16. Early voting runs May 2 to May 9.