Bridget Mary McCormack (born July 23, 1966) is an American lawyer, professor, and judge. She served on the

Michigan Supreme Court The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the state ...

from 2013 to 2022, first as an

associate justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

, and as chief justice from 2019 to 2022. Previously she was a professor at the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a Public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of C ...

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

, where she taught criminal law and

legal ethics Legal ethics are principles of conduct that members of the legal profession are expected to observe in their practice. They are an outgrowth of the development of the legal profession itself. In the United States In the U.S., each state or territ ...

and oversaw the law school's clinical programs as associate dean of clinical affairs. Her academic work focused on practical experience in legal education.Faculty Bio: Bridget Mary McCormack
, University of Michigan Law School. McCormack launched and worked in a pediatric advocacy law clinic focusing on children with health problems, and a

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

clinic. She retired from the Supreme Court at the end of 2022.

Education

The older sister of actress

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

and filmmaker

Will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, McCormack grew up in

Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a city in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, known by its nickname as "The Queen City."

and graduated from

Wardlaw-Hartridge School The Wardlaw+Hartridge School (commonly referred to as Wardlaw or W+H) is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational day school located in Edison, New Jersey, United States, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. It is divided ...

in 1984. She received her

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

with honors in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and philosophy from

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

in 1988. She received her

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in New ...

, where she was a Root-Tilden Scholar, in 1991.

Career

McCormack started her legal career in New York, first as trial counsel at the

Legal Aid Society The Legal Aid Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit legal aid provider based in New York City. Founded in 1876, it is the oldest and largest provider of legal aid in the United States. Its attorneys provide representation on criminal and civil matt ...

and then at the Office of the Appellate Defender. She taught at

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

in New Haven, Connecticut as a Robert M. Cover Fellow from 1997 to 1998. She joined the faculty of the University of Michigan Law School in 1998, and became associate dean of clinical affairs in 2003. As associate dean for clinical affairs at the law school, McCormack supervised students in complex federal litigation in the general clinical program. McCormack also worked to expand Michigan Law School's clinical offerings during her tenure. In 2008, McCormack founded the Michigan Innocence Clinic, which is the nation's first innocence clinic to focus on non-DNA evidence. McCormack has published articles on constitutional law, criminal law, criminal procedure, evidence, and legal ethics. McCormack served on the

Association of American Law Schools The Association of American Law Schools (AALS), formed in 1900, is a non-profit organization of 176 law schools in the United States. An additional 19 schools pay a fee to receive services but are not members. AALS incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non ...

Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure. In 2008, she testified before the

Detroit City Council The Detroit City Council is the legislative body of Detroit, Michigan, United States. The full-time council is required to meet every business day for at least 10 months of the year, with at least eight of these meetings occurring at a location ...

about its investigation of the city attorney's role in the case involving former Detroit Mayor

Kwame Kilpatrick Kwame Malik Kilpatrick (born June 8, 1970) is an American former politician who served as the 72nd mayor of Detroit from 2002 to 2008. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented the 9th district in the Michigan House of Represen ...

Michigan Supreme Court

2012 election

In 2012, McCormack ran for a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court. She ran an independent outsider campaign, and was not a favorite of the

Michigan Democratic Party The Michigan Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Michigan. It is based in Lansing. Lavora Barnes is the party's current chair. She was previously the party's Chief Operating Officer. The party currently con ...

establishment, though she ultimately received the party's endorsement. Her campaign included an advertisement encouraging voters to complete the non-partisan section of the ballot where this seat was listed, and also promoting her qualifications. The ad featured a reunion of much of the principal cast of ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...

'' in their former roles, including McCormack's sister

. During the campaign, the

Judicial Crisis Network The Concord Fund (formally known as the Judicial Crisis Network and, before that, as the Judicial Confirmation Network) is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative advocacy organization. Its president is Carrie Campbell Severi ...

released an ad claiming that McCormack had "volunteered to help free a terrorist" when she represented Abdumuqit Vohidov, who had been held without charge in Guantanamo.

Andrew Rosenthal Andrew Mark Rosenthal (born February 25, 1956) is an American journalist and former editorial page editor of ''The New York Times''. He is the son of A. M. Rosenthal, a longtime ''New York Times'' senior executive and executive editor. While at ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' criticized the ad as exploitative, pointing out that Vohidov was released by a non-judicial board, and questioning whether he should be described as a "terrorist". McCormack was elected, along with incumbents Stephen Markman and

Brian Zahra Brian K. Zahra (born January 9, 1960) is a justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. He was appointed to fill a vacancy by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder in 2011. Zahra won his bid for reelection in 2022 to retain his seat for eight more years, per t ...

Chief Justice

In 2019 Markman stepped down from the position as chief justice, and McCormack was chosen by the members of the court to succeed him. This was the first time in the state's history that the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

(

Gretchen Whitmer Gretchen Esther Whitmer (born August 23, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 49th governor of Michigan since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2001 to 2006 a ...

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

(

Dana Nessel Dana Michelle Nessel (born April 19, 1969) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the 54th Attorney General of Michigan since January 2019. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Nessel is the second openly lesbian woman elected at ...

), secretary of state (

Jocelyn Benson Jocelyn Benson (born October 22, 1977) is an American activist, politician, and former academic administrator. She is the 43rd Secretary of State of Michigan. Benson is a former dean of Wayne State University Law School, a co-founder of the Mili ...

), chief justice (McCormack) were all women. McCormack was re-elected in 2020 for a second eight-year term on the Supreme Court. However, she announced in September 2022 that she would retire by the end of the year, to take over as president and CEO of the

American Arbitration Association The American Arbitration Association (AAA) is a not-for-profit organization in the field of alternative dispute resolution, providing services to individuals and organizations who wish to resolve conflicts out of court, and one of several arbitr ...

Personal life

McCormack's father is a former

United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

and retired small business owner, and her mother is a clinical social worker. McCormack's sister

is an actress. Her brother

is an actor and screenwriter.How Michigan judicial candidate Bridget Mary McCormack got 'The West Wing' cast for her campaign video
''Washington Post'', September 20, 2012. McCormack is married to University of Michigan Law School professor Steven P. Croley, who served as general counsel in the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United Stat ...

from 2014 to 2017, while on leave from the law school. The couple have four children.

References

External links

Bio: Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack
- Michigan Courts (accessed 11/12/2020) , - {{DEFAULTSORT:McCormack, Bridget Mary 1966 births Living people 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges American women academics Chief Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court Michigan Democrats Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court New York University School of Law alumni People from Plainfield, New Jersey Place of birth missing (living people) Trinity College (Connecticut) alumni University of Michigan Law School faculty Wardlaw-Hartridge School alumni Women legal scholars Women chief justices of state supreme courts in the United States