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Robert Cordy
Robert J. Cordy was a justice on the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. He was nominated to the court by Republican Governor Paul Cellucci on December 12, 2000, and confirmed by the Governor's Council on January 3, 2001. Cordy was sworn in to office in February 2001.[1]
Cordy retired from the bench on August 12, 2016, and returned to private practice.[2] He would have had to retire in 2019 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70.[3] He was succeeded on the court by David A. Lowy.
Education
Cordy received his A.B. in 1971 from Dartmouth College and his J.D. in 1974 from Harvard Law School.[3]
Career
- 2001-2016: Justice, Supreme Court
- 1993-2001: Partner, McDermott, Will & Emery
- 1991-1993: Chief legal counsel to former Governor William Weld
- 1987-1991: Partner, Burns & Levinson
- 1982-1987: Prosecutor, Federal Prosecutor's Office
- 1979-1982: Associate general counsel, State Ethics Commission
- 1978-1979: Special assistant attorney general, Department of Revenue
- 1974-1978: Attorney, Massachusetts Defenders Committee [3]
Notable opinions
Cordy was one of three justices to dissent in the Goodridge v. Department of Public Health case, which legalized same-sex marriage in Massachusetts.[4]
Political outlook
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.
Cordy received a campaign finance score of 0.14, indicating a conservative ideological leaning. This was more conservative than the average score of -0.44 that justices received in Massachusetts.
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.[5]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Massachusetts Justice Robert Cordy. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ McDermott Will & Emery, "McDermott Bids Farewell to Robert Cordy, Head of Boston Office," accessed March 23, 2015
- ↑ 90.0 wbur, "Justice Robert Cordy Of State’s High Court To Retire," accessed February 4, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Massachusetts Judicial Branch, "Justice Robert J. Cordy," accessed March 23, 2015
- ↑ 'Find Law.com, "Goodridge v. Department of Public Health," accessed March 23, 2015
- ↑ Stanford University, "State Supreme Court Ideology and 'New Style' Judicial Campaigns," October 31, 2012
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
