Gavel Grab

Last week, at their annual conference in Anchorage, Alaska, the Conference of Chief Justices elected Chief Justice Margaret Marshall of Massachusetts to be the new president according to Legal Blog Watch.

A native South African, Justice Marshall is most noted for writing the opinion that legalized Same-Sex marriages in Massachusetts in 2003.

The Conference of Chief Justices is made up of the  highest judicial officers in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, the Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam and the Virgin Islands. The group was founded in 1949 in order to, as their website states:

Provide an opportunity for the highest judicial officers of the states to meet and discuss matters of importance in improving the administration of justice, rules and methods of procedure, and the organization and operation of state courts and judicial systems, and to make recommendations and bring about improvements on such matters.

The organization was formed by the Justice at Stake partner, the National Center for State Courts, and in the past has  passed an important resolution on judicial selection.

Tags: Chief Justice Margaret Marshall, Conferences of Chief Justice, National Center for State Courts, Same-Sex Marriage