Alabama Constitution Section 163 Appointment qualifications terms of office and compensation of registers in chancery fees of registers of chancery to be uniform throughout state
Alabama Constitution – Section 163: Registers in Chancery
Section 163 of the Alabama Constitution addresses the appointment, qualifications, term, and compensation of Registers in Chancery. These were officials in the now mostly obsolete chancery (equity) courts.
Key Provisions:
Appointment:
Registers in chancery were appointed, not elected.
The method of appointment was to be prescribed by law.
Qualifications & Term of Office:
The qualifications and term lengths for registers were also determined by law, not directly by the constitution.
Compensation:
Compensation for these officers was set by law, and the law had to provide for uniform fees throughout the state.
Uniform Fees:
Any fees charged by registers of chancery had to be the same across the entire state—no local variations allowed.
⚖️ Modern Relevance:
Chancery courts have been effectively merged into Alabama’s unified circuit court system, so Registers in Chancery are no longer appointed in practice.
However, Section 163 remains in the Constitution for historical and legal continuity.
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