Clifford "Cliff" Taylor (born November 9, 1942) is a former American judge who 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 1997 through 2009. He served as the Michigan Supreme Court's Chief Justice from 2005 through 2009. After his tenure as a judge, he joined the law firm of Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone and served as a visiting law professor at

Ave Maria School of Law Ave Maria School of Law is a private Roman Catholic law school in Vineyards, Florida. It was founded in 1999 and is accredited by the American Bar Association. The school is perennially ranked as the "most conservative" and "most devout" law scho ...

Michigan Supreme Court

Taylor was appointed to the court in 1997 by then-Governor

John Engler John Mathias Engler (born October 12, 1948) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. A member of the Republican Party, he later worked for Business Roundtable, where '' The Hill'' ...

, ran for election to the balance of the appointed term in 1998 and was reelected in 2000. He was chosen by his fellow justices to be the Chief Justice twice, in 2005 and 2007. Wayne County Circuit Judge Diane Marie Hathaway defeated Justice Taylor in the 2008 Supreme Court election. After Taylor's defeat in the election, the Court chose

Marilyn Jean Kelly Marilyn Jean Kelly (born April 15, 1938) is a retired jurist in Michigan. She was elected to two terms both on the Michigan Court of Appeals and as a justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. Due to her being over 70 years old, Kelly was prohibited ...

to succeed him as chief justice.

Personal

Taylor is a graduate of the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and

The George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

. He is chairman of the board of directors of the

Mackinac Center for Public Policy The Mackinac Center for Public Policy () in Midland, Michigan, is the largest U.S. state-based free market think tank in the United States. The Mackinac Center conducts policy research and educational programs. The Center sponsors MichiganVotes. ...

. He is married to Lucille Taylor, with whom he has two sons.

References

Living people University of Michigan alumni George Washington University Law School alumni Chief Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court 1942 births Ave Maria School of Law faculty Mackinac Center for Public Policy Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court {{US-state-judge-stub