Sarah Campbell
Sarah Campbell is a judge of the Tennessee Supreme Court Middle Section. She assumed office on February 10, 2022. Her current term ends on September 1, 2030.
Campbell ran for re-election for judge of the Tennessee Supreme Court Middle Section. She won in the retention election on August 4, 2022.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) appointed Campbell to the Tennessee Supreme Court on January 12, 2022.[1] Campbell succeeded Justice Cornelia Clark, who passed away from cancer on September 24, 2021.[2] To learn more about this appointment, click here.
Biography
Before her nomination to the Tennessee Supreme Court, Campbell worked as the state of Tennessee's associate solicitor general and special assistant to the attorney general. Her career experience includes working at the Washington, D.C. law firm Williams & Connolly LLP and clerking for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and 11th Circuit Judge William Pryor.[1]
Campbell earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee and master's and J.D. degrees from Duke University.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Tennessee Supreme Court elections, 2022
Tennessee Supreme Court Middle Section, Campbell's seat
Sarah Campbell was retained to the Tennessee Supreme Court Middle Section on August 4, 2022 with 72.9% of the vote.
Retention Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✔ | Yes |
72.9
|
466,860 | ||
No |
27.1
|
173,306 | |||
Total Votes |
640,166 | ||||
|
|
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Sarah Campbell did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Appointments
2022
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) appointed Sarah Campbell to the Tennessee Supreme Court on January 12, 2022.[1] Campbell succeeded Justice Cornelia Clark, who passed away from cancer on September 24, 2021.[2] Campbell is Governor Lee's first nominee to the five-member supreme court.
At the time of the vacancy, midterm vacancies on the court were filled by assisted appointment with legislative approval.
State supreme court judicial selection in Tennessee
- See also: Judicial selection in Tennessee
The five justices on the Tennessee Supreme Court are selected through assisted appointment. The governor selects a nominee from a list of recommended candidates from a judicial nominating commission. The nominee must be confirmed by the Tennessee General Assembly. Justices face retention elections at the end of their terms.[3][4][5]
The appointment system was adjusted in 2014 with the passage of a state ballot measure titled Tennessee Judicial Selection, Amendment 2. The measure added the required confirmation by the Tennessee legislature. While Tennessee state law changed in 2014 to eliminate the judicial nominating commission and require legislative approval of the governor’s appointee, Gov. Bill Haslam’s Executive Order No. 54 and Gov. Bill Lee’s subsequent Executive Order No. 87 re-established the judicial nominating commission for appointments. Accordingly, Tennessee’s process is effectively assisted appointment with legislative confirmation.
Qualifications
To serve on this court, a judge must be:
- authorized to practice law in the state;
- a state resident for five years; and
- at least 35 years old.[4]
Chief justice
According to the Tennessee Constitution, the justices of the supreme court select the chief justice.[6] The chief justice serves a four-year term.
Vacancies
If a midterm vacancy occurs on the court, the governor appoints a replacement justice from a list from a judicial nominating commission. The nominee must be confirmed by both chambers of the state legislature. If filling an interim vacancy, the appointee stands for retention in the next general election at least 30 days after the vacancy occurred. The retained judge serves out the remainder of the unexpired term before again running for retention to serve a full eight-year term.[3][4] Judges are voted upon by the voters of the whole state.[7]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Office of the Tennessee Governor, "Gov. Lee Names Tennessee Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals Appointees," January 12, 2022
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 AP News, "Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Cornelia Clark dies," September 24, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Justia Law, "Tennessee Code Annotated § 17-4-101," accessed April 16, 2025 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "VacancyCode" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Tennessee," archived September 11, 2014
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Tennessee; Judicial Nominating Commissions," accessed September 30, 2021
- ↑ TNCourts.gov, "JUSTICE SHARON LEE ELECTED CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE TENNESSEE SUPREME COURT," August 14, 2014
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Tennessee," accessed August 5, 2016
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Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee
State courts:
Tennessee Supreme Court • Tennessee Court of Appeals • Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals • Tennessee Circuit Court • Tennessee Chancery Courts • Tennessee Criminal Court • Tennessee Probate Court • Tennessee General Sessions Court • Tennessee Juvenile Court • Tennessee Municipal Court
State resources:
Courts in Tennessee • Tennessee judicial elections • Judicial selection in Tennessee
