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Irma Raker
Irma S. Raker is a former associate justice for the Maryland Court of Appeals, serving the Seventh Appellate Circuit in Montgomery County. Governor William Donald Schaefer nominated her to that seat in 1993. She took the bench on January 7, 1994, and held her seat until April 24, 2008, when she retired from the bench due to the state's mandatory retirement age of 70. Raker can still sit on assignment as a senior judge.[1][2][3][4]
The court's name changed from the Maryland Court of Appeals to the Maryland Supreme Court, following a ballot initiative that voters approved in November 2022.[5]
Education
Raker earned her B.A. from Syracuse University in 1959. Later that year, Raker studied at the Hague Academy of International Law. She went on to earn her J.D. American University's Washington College of Law in 1972. While a law student, she published “The New 'No-Knock' Provision and its Effect on the Authority of the Police to Break and Enter” in the American University Law Review, in the 1970-71 volume.[2]
Career
- 1994-2008: Associate justice, Maryland Court of Appeals
- 1982-1993: Associate judge, Maryland Sixth Circuit
- 1980-Present: Adjunct professor, American University Washington College of Law
- 1980-1982: Associate judge, Maryland Sixth District
- 1979-1980: Partner, Sachs, Greenebaum, and Tayler
- 1973-1979: Assistant state's attorney, Montgomery County
- 1973: Admitted to the Maryland Bar
Raker was the first female assistant state's attorney in Montgomery County. She was the second woman to sit on the court of appeals, after Judge Rita C. Davidson.[1][2]
Awards and associations
- 2013-2014: Member, Task Force to Study Implementing a Civil Right to Counsel in Maryland
- 2013: Influential Marylander, Maryland Daily Record
- 2011-Present: Member, Circuit Court Law Library Study Committee
- 2009: H. Vernon Eney Award, Maryland Bar Foundation
- 2008-2014: Chairperson, Maryland Access to Justice Commission
- 2008: Lifetime achievement honor, Maryland Chapter of the National Association of Women Judges and Women Legislators
- 2007: Margaret Brent Award, American Bar Association
- 2001, 1999 & 1997: Maryland’s Top 100 Women, "Circle of Excellence," Maryland Daily Record
- 2001: Maryland Leadership in Law Award, Maryland Daily Record
- 2001: Citizen of the Year, National Association of Social Workers
- October 2000: Outstanding Jurist, Montgomery County Bar Association
- 2000: Member, Board of Directors, Jobs Unlimited
- 1999: Distinguished Women's Award, Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
- 1999: Century of Service Award, Montgomery County Bar Association
- 1999: Distinguished Alumna Award, Washington College of Law, The American University
- 1999: Lifetime Achievement Award, Midwood High School Alumni Association
- October 1998: Elizabeth Dole Women of Achievement Award, American Red Cross, Montgomery Chapter
- 1998-Present: Member, Dean’s Advisory Council, Washington College of Law, The American University
- 1998-Present: Member, Advisory Board, Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
- 1998-2001: Member, Public Awareness Committee, Maryland Judicial Conference
- 1997-2008: Chair, Maryland Judicial Compensation Committee, Maryland Judicial Conference
- 1997: Elected, American Law Institute
- 1996-Present: Member, Network 2000
- 1996: Who’s Who of American Law
- 1996: Outstanding Alumnus Spokesperson and Jurist, Syracuse University Alumni Club of Greater Baltimore
- 1995-2005: Attorney General's and Lieutenant Governor's Family Violence Council
- 1995: Award of Appreciation, New York Bar Foundation
- 1995: Margaret Brent Trailblazer's Award, American Bar Association
- 1995: Rita C. Davidson award, Women's Bar Association of Maryland
- 1994-Present: Fellow, American Bar Association
- 1999: Member, Trial Release Task Force
- 1998: Member, Task Force on Youth in the Criminal Justice System
- 1997-2000: Elected, criminal law section
- 1994: State delegate, conference of state trial judges
- 1994: Chair, criminal justice standards committee
- 1991-2008: Member, Maryland Special Committee to Revise Article 27, Crimes and Punishment, Annotated Code for Maryland
- 1985-89: Executive Committee, Maryland Judicial Conference
- 1980-Present: National Association of Women Judges
- 1994: President, Maryland Chapter
- 1980-Present: Treasurer, Maryland Chapter
- 1979: Member, Montgomery County Advisory Commission on Environmental Law
- Montgomery County Rape Crisis Center
- Commission on Battered Spouses, Montgomery County
- Member, Advisory Commission on Child Abuse and Neglect
- American Judicature Book Award for Torts, Criminal Procedure
- Lura E. Turley Award, Washington College of Law, Law Review, The American University
- Former member, board of directors, Hebrew Home of Greater Washington
- Member, Maryland State Bar Association
- 2013-Present: Member, criminal subcommittee of pattern jury instruction committee
- 2002-Present: Member, special committee on citizenship & law-related education
- Board of governors
- Chair, criminal law & practice section
- Chair, committee to draft pattern jury instructions in criminal cases
- Member, Montgomery County Bar Association
- Member, Women's Bar Association of Maryland
- Member, Women's Bar Association of the District of Columbia[1][2][4]
See also
- Maryland Court of Appeals
- Courts in Maryland
- Judicial selection in Maryland
- News: Maryland sees rises in women judges, September 30, 2012
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Maryland Courts, "Maryland Court of Appeals Judge Irma Raker honored by Women Judges and Legislators’ Association," April 13, 2009
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Archives of Maryland, "Irma S. Raker," accessed April 16, 2015
- ↑ WMDT 47, "Number of women judges on the rise in Md.," September 30, 2012
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Maryland Manual On-line, "Court of Appeals: Former Judges," February 25, 2015
- ↑ CBS Baltimore, "The Court of Appeals of Maryland is now the Supreme Court of Maryland," December 14, 2022
Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Maryland • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Maryland
State courts:
Maryland Supreme Court • Appellate Court of Maryland • Maryland District Courts • Maryland Circuit Courts • Maryland Orphans' Court
State resources:
Courts in Maryland • Maryland judicial elections • Judicial selection in Maryland
