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Richard Robinson (Connecticut)
Richard A. Robinson was a judge of the Connecticut Supreme Court Chief Justice. He assumed office in 2018. He left office on September 6, 2024.
In Connecticut, the position of chief justice is a specific seat on the court (similar to the Supreme Court of the United States) rather than a peer-selected leadership position. Robinson was appointed as chief justice by Gov. Dan Malloy (D) to fill the seat vacated when Chief Justice Chase Rogers retired.[1] The Connecticut General Assembly confirmed Robinson on April 30, 2018.[2] To learn more about this appointment, click here. Robinson retired on September 6, 2024. To learn more about this vacancy, click here.
Robinson first became a member of the court through a gubernatorial appointment. Malloy nominated him as an associate justice on December 10, 2013. Robinson succeeded Flemming L. Norcott, Jr., who retired on October 11, 2013, after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70. Robinson's nomination to the Supreme Court was approved by a unanimous vote of the Executive Council on December 19, 2013, and Robinson began sitting on the court in an interim capacity.[3] The Connecticut General Assembly approved his nomination on February 26, 2014.[4][5]
In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship, a study examining the partisan affiliation of all state supreme court justices in the country. As part of this study, we assigned each justice a Confidence Score describing our confidence in the degree of partisanship exhibited by the justices' past partisan behavior, before they joined the court.[6] Robinson received a confidence score of Indeterminate.[7] Click here to read more about this study.
Robinson was previously a judge on the Connecticut Appellate Court. He was appointed to the appellate court by Gov. Mary Jodi Rell (R) to replace Judge Barry Schaller.[8] He was appointed on December 10, 2007.[9] Before his appointment to the appellate court, Robinson served on the Connecticut Superior Court. Gov. John Rowland (R) appointed him to that court in 2000.[10]
Biography
Robinson was born in Stamford, Connecticut. He graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1979 with a bachelor's degree. Robinson received his J.D. from West Virginia University School of Law in 1984.[9]
Before becoming a judge, Robinson worked as assistant corporation counsel and as staff counsel for the City of Stamford. He served on the Connecticut Superior Court from 2000 to 2007. During his tenure, Robinson served as presiding judge for the New Britain District Superior Court and the Stamford/Norwalk District Superior Court, and as assistant administrative judge for the Ansonia/Milford District Superior Court. Robinson was appointed to the Connecticut Appellate Court in 2007 and served until his state supreme court appointment in 2013.[9]
Robinson's other experience includes serving as general counsel for the Connecticut Conference of the NAACP from 1988 to 2000 and being a faculty member of several judicial institutes. As of 2021, he'd served as chairman of the Advisory Committee on Cultural Competency since 2009. His awards include the Quinnipiac School of Law Black Student Association Thurgood Marshall Award, which he received in 2019.[9]
Appointments
2018
Connecticut Supreme Court Chief Justice Chase Rogers retired on February 5, 2018. In a letter to colleagues announcing her retirement, Rogers wrote, "When I began my tenure in 2007, I told my family and close friends that I thought ten years in a position of leadership was just about right...I continue to believe that and, therefore, have decided to move on to new tasks before I overstay my welcome."[11]
Under Connecticut law, Democratic Governor Dan Malloy appointed Rogers' replacement. Malloy's nominee, Connecticut Supreme Court Justice Richard A. Robinson, was confirmed by the Connecticut General Assembly on Monday, April 30, 2018.[12] Robinson was Malloy's sixth appointment to the seven-member supreme court.
2013
Malloy nominated Robinson as an associate justice to the Connecticut Supreme Court on December 10, 2013. The Executive Council approved Robinson's nomination with a unanimous vote on December 19, 2013, and Robinson began sitting on the court in an interim capacity. The General Assembly approved his nomination in February of 2014.[3]
2007
Gov. Mary Jodi Rell (R) appointed Robinson to the Connecticut Appellate Court on December 10, 2007.[8][9]
2000
Gov. John Rowland (R) appointed Robinson to the Connecticut Superior Court in 2000.[10]
Analysis
Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship (2020)
Last updated: June 15, 2020
In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship, a study examining the partisan affiliation of all state supreme court justices in the country as of June 15, 2020.
The study presented Confidence Scores that represented our confidence in each justice's degree of partisan affiliation. This was not a measure of where a justice fell on an ideological spectrum, but rather a measure of how much confidence we had that a justice was or had been affiliated with a political party. The scores were based on seven factors, including but not limited to party registration.[13]
The five resulting categories of Confidence Scores were:
- Strong Democrat
- Mild Democrat
- Indeterminate[14]
- Mild Republican
- Strong Republican
This justice's Confidence Score, as well as the factors contributing to that score, is presented below. The information below was current as of June 2020.
Richard
Robinson
Connecticut
- Partisan Confidence Score:
Indeterminate - Judicial Selection Method:
Assisted appointment through governor controlled judicial nominating commission - Key Factors:
- Donated less than $2,000 to Republican candidates
- Appointed by a Democratic governor
- State was a Democratic trifecta at time of appointment
Partisan Profile
Details:
Robinson donated $200 to Republican candidates and organizations. He was appointed by Gov. Dan Malloy (D) in 2018. At the time of his appointment, Connecticut was a Democratic trifecta.
State supreme court judicial selection in Connecticut
- See also: Judicial selection in Connecticut
The seven justices on the Connecticut Supreme Court are selected through the assisted appointment method. The Connecticut Judicial Selection Commission is responsible for screening candidates and submitting a shortlist to the governor. The commission is made up of 12 members: six appointed by the governor and six appointed by leaders in the state legislature. The governor must appoint a justice from the commission's shortlist and the appointee must then be confirmed by a majority vote of the Connecticut General Assembly.[15][16]
Justices serve for eight years after their appointment. To continue to serve on the court, they must be renominated by the governor and reapproved by the General Assembly.[16]
Qualifications
To serve on this court, a judge must be:
- a state resident;
- licensed to practice law in the state; and
- under the age of 70 (retirement at 70 is mandatory).[17]
Chief justice
The chief justice is appointed by the governor and confirmed by a majority vote of the Connecticut General Assembly. In the event of a vacancy, however, the governor may nominate an associate justice to serve as chief without involving the judicial nominating commission. Chief justices appointed this way will serve out the remainder of their predecessor's term rather than a full eight years, which is the typical term length of the chief justice.[15]
Vacancies
If a midterm vacancy occurs on the court, the seat is filled as it normally would be if the vacancy occurred at the end of a judge's term. A judicial nominating commission recommends qualified candidates to the governor and the governor selects a successor from that list with legislative approval. The new appointee serves an eight-year term.[18]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ WFSB, "Gov. nominates Justice Robinson of Stamford for chief justice," April 5, 2018
- ↑ The Day, "House unanimously confirms Robinson as chief justice," April 30, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 CT News Junkie, "Judiciary Committee forwards Robinson nomination to Legislature," December 19, 2013
- ↑ The Hartford Guardian, "Judge Robinson confirmed for state's supreme court," February 27, 2014
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Connecticut," accessed March 5, 2014
- ↑ We calculated confidence scores by collecting several data points such as party registration, donations, and previous political campaigns.
- ↑ The five possible confidence scores were: Strong Democrat, Mild Democrat, Indeterminate, Mild Republican, and Strong Republican.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Office of Governor M. Jodi Rell, "Governor Rell nominates Beach, Robinson to Appellate Court," November 1, 2007
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 State of Connecticut Judicial Branch, "Biographies of Supreme Court Justices, Chief Justice Richard A. Robinson," accessed June 22, 2021
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The CT Mirror, "Malloy nominates Richard A. Robinson as chief justice," April 5, 2018
- ↑ Hartford Courant, "Chief Justice Chase Rogers Retiring," November 2, 2017
- ↑ theday, "House unanimously confirms Robinson as chief justice," April 30, 2018
- ↑ The seven factors were party registration, donations made to partisan candidates, donations made to political parties, donations received from political parties or bodies with clear political affiliation, participation in political campaigns, the partisanship of the body responsible for appointing the justice, and state trifecta status when the justice joined the court.
- ↑ An Indeterminate score indicates that there is either not enough information about the justice’s partisan affiliations or that our research found conflicting partisan affiliations.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Connecticut General Assembly, "Sec. 51-44a. Judicial Selection Commission. Members. Duties. Nomination of judges by Governor.," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Connecticut General Assembly, "Article Fifth. of the Judicial Department - Sec. 2.," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ State of Connecticut Judicial Branch, "Frequently Asked Media Questions," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ Brennan Center for Justice, "Judicial Selection: An Interactive Map," accessed March 23, 2023
Federal courts:
Second Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Connecticut • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Connecticut
State courts:
Connecticut Supreme Court • Connecticut Appellate Court • Connecticut Superior Court • Connecticut Probate Courts
State resources:
Courts in Connecticut • Connecticut judicial elections • Judicial selection in Connecticut
