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Elizabeth McClanahan
Elizabeth A. McClanahan was a justice on the Virginia Supreme Court from 2011 to 2019. She was elected to this position by the Virginia General Assembly on July 29, 2011. She retired on September 1, 2019. Her current term would have expired in 2023.[1][2] To learn more about this vacancy, click here.
Nomination for high court
In early 2011, McClanahan was formally nominated by the Virginia House of Delegates to fill one of two vacancies on the Virginia Supreme Court.[3] She was the fourth female to be elected to the court.[4]
Education
McClanahan graduated from the University of Dayton School of Law in 1984.[5]
Career
McClanahan worked as a partner of the law firm Penn, Stuart & Eskridge and as the chief deputy attorney general of Virginia before joining the Virginia Court of Appeals in 2003. In July 2011, the Virginia Legislature elected her to the Virginia Supreme Court.[5][6]
Political ideology
In October 2012, political science professors Adam Bonica and Michael Woodruff of Stanford University attempted to determine the partisan ideology of state supreme court justices. They created a scoring system in which a score above 0 indicated a more conservative-leaning ideology, while scores below 0 were more liberal.
McClanahan received a campaign finance score of 0.88, indicating a conservative ideological leaning. This was more conservative than the average score of 0.11 that justices received in Virginia.
The study was based on data from campaign contributions by the judges themselves, the partisan leaning of those who contributed to the judges' campaigns, or, in the absence of elections, the ideology of the appointing body (governor or legislature). This study was not a definitive label of a justice, but an academic summary of various relevant factors.[7]
See also
External links
- Virginia's Judicial System, "Justices of the Supreme Court of Virginia"
- Washington Post, "Northern Virginia gets three new judges" 04/28/2011
- Richmond Times-Dispatch, "Va. Supreme Court welcomes McClanahan, its 101st justice," September 2, 2011
Footnotes
- ↑ The Washington Post, "House, Senate elevate two appellate judges to Supreme Court; one is first black female justice," July 29, 2011
- ↑ Richmond Times-Dispatch, "Virginia Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan announces Sept. 1 retirement," January 25, 2019
- ↑ The Roanoke Times, "Supreme Court seats, other judgeships still vacant," March 1, 2011
- ↑ Times Dispatch, "Powell sworn in as justice on Virginia Supreme Court," October 22, 2011
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 University of Dayton School of Law, Elizabeth A. McClanahan '84," accessed August 15, 2014
- ↑ Virginia Lawyers Weekly, "McClanahan tapped for appeals court," February 24, 2003
- ↑ Stanford University, "State Supreme Court Ideology and 'New Style' Judicial Campaigns," October 31, 2012
Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Virginia, Western District of Virginia
State courts:
Virginia Supreme Court • Virginia Court of Appeals • Virginia Circuit Courts • Virginia District Courts • Virginia Magistrates
State resources:
Courts in Virginia • Virginia judicial elections • Judicial selection in Virginia
