Litigation

MA Nominee for Chief Justice Would Make History

By Peter Hardin

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has nominated Justice Roderick L. Ireland to be chief justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. If confirmed, Justice Ireland would be the state’s first African American chief justice.

Justice Ireland first was picked for the high court by then-Gov. William Weld, a Republican, in 1997, according to a Bay State Banner article. Fielding a question about his judicial philosophy, Justice Ireland, 65, replied, ?Call ?em as you see ?em, be fair and let the law dictate where you go.?

(Photo, courtesy of the Associated Press, shows Gov. Patrick at left and Justice Ireland at right). To learn more about the importance of diversity on the bench, check out Justice at Stake’s issues page on the topic.

Full post as published by The Gavel on November 11, 2010 (boomark / email).