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Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court justice vacancy (February 2024)
| Massachusetts Supreme Court |
|---|
 |
| Lowy vacancy |
| Date: February 2, 2024 |
| Status: Seat filled |
| Nomination |
| Nominee: Gabrielle Wolohojian |
| Date: February 7, 2024 |
Governor Maura Healey (D) nominated Gabrielle Wolohojian to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on February 7, 2024. She was confirmed by the Massachusetts Governor's Council on February 28, 2024, and was sworn in on April 22, 2024.[1]
Wolohojian replaced Justice David A. Lowy, who retired on February 2, 2024. On November 29, 2023, the same day Lowy announced his retirement, president of the University of Massachusetts announced Lowy accepted a general counsel position with the school.[2][3] Wolohojian was Governor Healey's second nominee to the seven-member supreme court.
In Massachusetts, state supreme court justices are selected through direct gubernatorial appointment. Justices are appointed directly by the governor without the use of a nominating commission.[4] There are five states that use this selection method. To read more about the gubernatorial appointment of judges, click here.
Vacancies on the supreme court are filled by the governor with the approval of the Governor's Council. Judges serve until the mandatory retirement age of 70.[5]
Ballotpedia has compiled the following resources on the process to fill the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court vacancy:
- An overview of the appointee.
- An overview of the selection process.
- An overview of the court following the vacancy.
- An overview of the justice who left office.
- A list of other state supreme court appointments in 2024.
The appointee
- See also: Gabrielle Wolohojian
On February 7, 2024, Gov. Maura Healey nominated Wolohojian to serve on the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Her nomination is subject to confirmation from the Massachusetts Governor's Council.[6] On February 28, 2024, the Massachusetts Governor's Council approved her nomination to the state's highest court.[7]
Wolohojian began her legal career as a law clerk to Judge Rya Zobel of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts and clerked for Judge Bailey Aldrich of the United States Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit. She joined the law firm Hale and Dorr in 1991 and became a partner in the firm's litigation department. In 1994, she left Hale and Dorr to work on the Whitewater investigation as an associate independent counsel, returning to the firm 16 months later. She remained there until her appointment to the Massachusetts Appeals Court in 2008.[8]
The selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Massachusetts
In Massachusetts, state supreme court justices are selected through direct gubernatorial appointment. Justices are appointed directly by the governor without the use of a nominating commission.[9] There are five states that use this selection method. To read more about the gubernatorial appointment of judges, click here.
Makeup of the court
- See also: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Justices
Following Lowy's retirement, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court included the following members:
| ■ Frank M. Gaziano | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2016 | |
| ■ Serge Georges Jr. | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2020 | |
| ■ Scott Kafker | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2017 | |
| ■ Dalila Wendlandt | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2020 | |
| ■ Kimberly S. Budd | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2016 | |
| ■ Elizabeth Dewar | Appointed by Gov. Maura Healey (D) in 2023 |
About the court
Founded in 1692, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the state's court of last resort and has seven judgeships. The chief of the court is Kimberly S. Budd, who was confirmed to the position on November 18, 2020. The court is the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Western Hemisphere. Originally called the Superior Court of Judicature, it was established in 1692. The court's name was changed to its current one by the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780.[10]
About Justice Lowy
- See also: David A. Lowy
Lowy received his undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts in 1983 and his J.D. from Boston University in 1987.[11] He began his legal career as an associate at the Goodwin, Procter & Hoar law firm from 1987 to 1990, also serving as law clerk for Edward Harrington, a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts from 1988 to 1989. Beginning in 1992, Lowy was deputy legal counsel to Governor William Weld and assistant district attorney for Essex and Suffolk counties, occupying the former role until 1995 and the latter until 1997.
Lowy was first appointed to the bench as a District Court Judge in 1997. Governor Paul Cellucci appointed him to the Massachusetts Superior Court in 2001, where he served until his appointment to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court by Republican Governor Charlie Baker on June 14, 2016.[12]
Other state supreme court appointments in 2024
- See also: State supreme court vacancies, 2024
The following table lists vacancies on state supreme courts that opened in 2024. Click the link under the Court column for a particular vacancy for more information on that vacancy.
Click here for vacancies that opened in 2023.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ NBC 10 Boston, "Wolohojian sworn in as Mass. Supreme Judicial Court justice," April 22, 2024
- ↑ Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Supreme Judicial Court Justice David A. Lowy to Retire," November 29, 2023
- ↑ Boston Herald, "In Surprise, SJC’s Lowy plans to step down from state’s high court," November 29, 2023
- ↑ Note: In New Hampshire, a judicial selection commission has been established by executive order. The commission's recommendations are not binding.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedMAselect - ↑ Politico, "Healey’s no good very bad day," February 8, 2024
- ↑ AP News, "Ex-romantic partner of Massachusetts governor wins council OK to serve on state’s highest court," February 28, 2024
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbio - ↑ Note: In New Hampshire, a judicial selection commission has been established by executive order. The commission's recommendations are not binding.
- ↑ Massachusetts Court System, "About the Supreme Judicial Court," accessed January 29, 2015
- ↑ Martindale.com, "Judge Profile: David A. Lowy," accessed April 13, 2015
- ↑ Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justices," accessed July 9, 2021
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Federal courts:
First Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Massachusetts • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Massachusetts
State courts:
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court • Massachusetts Appeals Court • Massachusetts Superior Courts • Massachusetts District Courts • Massachusetts Housing Courts • Massachusetts Juvenile Courts • Massachusetts Land Courts • Massachusetts Probate and Family Courts • Boston Municipal Courts, Massachusetts
State resources:
Courts in Massachusetts • Massachusetts judicial elections • Judicial selection in Massachusetts
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