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Ellen Gorman
Ellen Gorman was a judge of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. She assumed office on October 1, 2007. She left office on March 18, 2022.
Gorman was first appointed to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court on October 1, 2007, by Gov. John Baldacci (D).[1][2] She was re-appointed by Governor Paul LePage (R) in February 2015.[3] To read more about judicial selection in Maine, click here.
Gorman retired at the end of her term on March 18, 2022.[4] To learn more about this retirement, click here.
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.[5] Gorman received a confidence score of Mild Democrat.[6] Click here to read more about this study.
Biography
Gorman received her undergraduate degree from Trinity College in 1977 and her J.D. from Cornell Law School in 1982. She worked as an associate at the law firm Richardson, Tyler, and Troubh from 1982 to 1986. She also served on the Workers' Compensation Commission until 1989. Gorman began her judicial career in 1989 when Gov. John McKernan (R) appointed her to the Maine District Court.[7]
Appointments
Maine Supreme Judicial Court
- See also: Maine Supreme Judicial Court
Gorman was first appointed to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court on October 1, 2007, by Gov. John Baldacci (D).
Maine Superior Court
- See also: Maine Superior Court
Gorman was first appointed to the Maine Superior Court by Gov. Angus King (I) in 2000.
Maine District Court
Gorman was first appointed to the Maine District Court by Gov. John McKernan (R) in 1989.
Analysis
Bonica and Woodruff campaign finance scores (2012)
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.
Gorman received a campaign finance score of -1.02, indicating a liberal ideological leaning. This was more liberal than the average score of -1.01 that justices received in Maine.
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.[8]
State supreme court judicial selection in Maine
- See also: Judicial selection in Maine
The seven justices of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court are appointed by the governor with confirmation from the Maine State Senate.[9]
Justices serve for seven years after their appointment. To continue to serve on the court, they must be reappointed by the governor and reconfirmed by the Maine State Senate.[9]
Qualifications
State law requires that supreme court justices be "learned in the law."[10]
Chief justice
In Maine, 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. The chief justice is appointed in the same manner as the other justices on the court.[9]
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 justice's term. The governor appoints a justice with confirmation by the Maine State Senate. The new appointee serves a seven-year term.[9]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Cleaves Law Library, "Ellen A. Gorman," accessed July 29, 2014
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Maine Members of the Highest Court," accessed July 29, 2014
- ↑ Office of Governor Paul R. LePage, "Governor LePage Announces Judicial Re-Appointments," February 23, 2015
- ↑ Office of Governor Janet T. Mills, "Governor Mills Nominates Judge Rick Lawrence to Maine Supreme Judicial Court," March 7, 2022
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ State of Maine Judicial Branch, "Supreme Court Justice Biographies," accessed July 23, 2021
- ↑ Stanford University, "State Supreme Court Ideology and 'New Style' Judicial Campaigns," October 31, 2012
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Maine," accessed September 15, 2021
- ↑ Maine Legislature, "Title 4: Judiciary, Chapter 1: Supreme Judicial Court - §1. Constitution of the court; administrative responsibilities of the court and the Chief Justice," accessed April 3, 2023
Federal courts:
First Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Maine • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Maine
State courts:
Maine Supreme Judicial Court • Maine Superior Court • Maine Business and Consumer Court • Maine District Courts • Maine Family Division • Maine Juvenile Court • Maine Probate Courts • Maine Small Claims Court • Maine Treatment Court
State resources:
Courts in Maine • Maine judicial elections • Judicial selection in Maine
