Supreme Court to Consider Rule Proposal to Merge Fourth and Seventh Judicial Circuits
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release: Oct. 2, 2026
Contact: Alisa Bousa, Public Information Officer, via email or 605.773.2031
PIERRE, S.D.—The South Dakota Unified Judicial System (UJS) State Court Administrator’s Office has formally proposed a rule to the South Dakota Supreme Court that would merge the Fourth Judicial Circuit and Seventh Judicial Circuit.
Currently, UJS is divided into seven judicial circuits which operate as the administrative structure supporting circuit courts across the state. The Fourth Judicial Circuit consists of Butte, Corson, Dewey, Harding, Lawrence, Meade, Perkins and Ziebach counties. The Seventh Judicial Circuit consists of Custer, Fall River, Oglala Lakota and Pennington counties.
The merger would eliminate duplicative administrative structures currently located in Deadwood, Sturgis and Rapid City. The proposed newly-constituted Fourth Circuit would be headquartered in Rapid City and feature a single administrative structure for managing circuit operations across the new 12-county circuit, including clerk of courts offices and probation services.
Long-term, the proposed merger is designed to strengthen UJS’ ability to manage increasing caseloads amid shifting population trends and evolving administrative needs. The proposed merger would allow UJS to better manage caseloads both in the urban and rural counties across the circuit by creating more uniformity and allowing work to be redistributed from county to county across the circuit. By distributing work between both rural and urban counties, UJS will be able to meet the increasing demands in busier counties, while ensuring offices in smaller counties remain open and maintain current staffing levels by bringing the work to them.
In the short term, the proposed merger would allow UJS to immediately re-purpose three full-time positions within South Dakota’s court system to meet current demands in the system without requesting more than $300,000 from the Legislature to fund these positions.
The merger proposal is part of a larger effort by the State Court Administrator’s Office to look for ways to improve efficiency across the court system and is based on UJS’ commitment to being a good steward of taxpayers’ money.
The proposed merger would not change day-to-day service within any county in the current Fourth or Seventh circuits. The current clerk of courts offices and probation offices in each county would remain open, and the current magistrate and circuit judges would keep the same duty stations and current court schedules would be maintained in every county.
Reorganizing the state’s circuit administrative composition is not new. In 1999, the Supreme Court reorganized the First and Second circuits and eliminated the Eighth Circuit.
UJS has conducted several public meetings and will continue to listen to concerns. The goal is a structure that best serves not only the areas included in the proposed merger, but also the entire state court system.
The proposed rule will be considered on Nov. 9, 2026, at 10 a.m. CST in the Supreme Court Courtroom at the State Capitol in Pierre. Those wanting to submit written comments in advance of the rules hearing may send those to:
Supreme Court Clerk’s Office
500 E. Capitol Ave.
Pierre, S.D. 57501
Email: comment@ujs.state.sd.us
The deadline to submit written input or comments is Oct. 26, 2026. Comments previously received in response to the proposal will be submitted to the Supreme Court with the proposed rule. Individuals may also appear in-person to offer public comment before the Court on the merits of the proposal.
View the proposed rule. Additional information on the proposed merger is available on the UJS website.
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About South Dakota Courts: The Unified Judicial System (UJS) consists of the Supreme Court, Circuit Courts and State Court Administrator’s Office. The Supreme Court is the state’s highest court and final decision maker on South Dakota law. The Circuit Courts are the state’s trial courts where criminal proceedings and civil litigation are handled. The State Court Administrator’s Office provides centralized administrative assistance and support services for the South Dakota judiciary. Learn more about UJS.
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