Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court justice vacancy (January 2024)
| Massachusetts Supreme Court |
|---|
 |
| Cypher vacancy |
| Date: January 12, 2024 |
| Status: Seat filled |
| Nomination |
| Nominee: Elizabeth Dewar |
| Date: December 8, 2023 |
On December 8, 2023, Governor Maura Healey (D) appointed Elizabeth Dewar to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.[1] She was confirmed by the Massachusetts Governor's Council on January 10, 2024.[2] She took office on January 12, 2024.
Dewar replaced Justice Elspeth Cypher, who retired on January 12, 2024. In her resignation, she cited her desire to return to teaching, announcing her acceptance of a visiting professorship at the Boston College Law School.[3] Dewar is Governor Healey's (D) first 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: Elizabeth Dewar
Elizabeth Dewar was appointed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on December 8, 2023, by Governor Maura Healey (D). She was confirmed on January 10, 2024, and was sworn in on January 12, 2024.[1][2]
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.[6] 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 Cypher'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 | |
| ■ David A. Lowy | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2016 | |
| ■ Dalila Wendlandt | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2020 | |
| ■ Kimberly S. Budd | Appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker (R) in 2016 |
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.[7]
About Justice Cypher
- See also: Elspeth Cypher
Cypher earned her B.A. from Emerson College in 1980 and her J.D. from Suffolk University Law School in 1986.[8] Cypher began her legal career as an associate with the law firm Grayer, Brown and Dilday. She left the firm in 1988 to become an assistant district attorney in Bristol County. In 1993, she became the chief of the appellate division of this office and served in this capacity until her appointment to the appeals court.[8]
Cypher was appointed to the Massachusetts Appeals Court by Republican Governor Paul Cellucci and took the bench on December 27, 2000. She was appointed to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in February 2017 by Republican Governor Charlie Baker. Cypher is a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association.[8]
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
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 WBUR, "Healey picks Solicitor Dewar for first open Supreme Judicial Court seat," December 8, 2023
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 GBH, "Dewar confirmed to state’s highest court," January 10, 2024
- ↑ Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Supreme Judicial Court Justice Elspeth B. Cypher to Retire," June 12, 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 - ↑ 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
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Massachusetts Court System, "Associate Justice Espeth B. Cypher," accessed February 9, 2017
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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
| |||||||
