Sally D. Adkins (born January 20, 1950) is a former judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals. She was appointed to the bench in 2008, after serving as a Judge of the Maryland Court of Special Appeals between 1998 and 2008. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Law. She retired from the bench on October 31, 2018.

Early life

Sally Denison Adkins was born in 1950 in

Salisbury, Maryland Salisbury () is a city in and the county seat of Wicomico County, Maryland, Wicomico County, Maryland, United States, and the largest city in Eastern Shore of Maryland, the state's Eastern Shore region. The population was 33,050 at the 2020 United ...

to Emily (née Schweppe) and E. Dale Adkins Jr. Her father was a partner of the firm Adkins, Potts & Smethurst and served as judge of the Circuit Court for Wicomico. She graduated from Kent School in

Kent, Connecticut Kent is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. Located alongside the border with New York, the town's population was 3,019 according to the 2020 census. Kent is home to three boarding schools: Kent School, the Marvelwood School ...

. She graduated with a

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 ...

in philosophy from

Lawrence University Lawrence University is a private liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Appleton, Wisconsin. Founded in 1847, its first classes were held on November 12, 1849. Lawrence was the second college in the U.S. to be founded as a coeducation ...

in 1972. She then received a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1975. She clerked for Marvin H. Smith in the Court of Appeals from 1975 to 1976, and then was admitted to the bar in Maryland in 1976.

Personal life

Adkins married William Jolliffe Bostian in 1977.

Career

After being admitted to the bar, she was an associate attorney at Adkins, Potts & Smethurst from 1976 to 1981. She then became a partner of the firm from 1982 to 1996. She was also the partner of Adkins & Allen, LLP from 1995 to 1996. Adkins served as associate judge of the Wicomico County Circuit Court, 1st Judicial Circuit from August 23, 1996, to June 23, 1998. She then served as judge of the Court of Special Appeals, 1st Appellate Judicial Court from June 24, 1998, to June 25, 2008. Adkins was appointed as judge on the Maryland Court of Appeals, 1st Appellate Judicial Circuit on June 25, 2008, by Governor

Martin O'Malley Martin Joseph O'Malley (born January 18, 1963) is an American lawyer and former politician who served as the 61st Governor of Maryland from 2007 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he was Mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007. O'Malley ...

. She filled the vacancy left by the retirement of Dale R. Cathell. She then retired from the Court of Appeals on October 30, 2018. She was a member of the

Maryland State Bar Association The Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of Maryland. The association pursues the following mission: "to effectively represent Maryland’s lawyers, to provide member services, and to promote profes ...

and served as president of the Wicomico County Bar Association from 1991 to 1992. She served on the board of directors of E.S. Adkins & Co.

Awards

* 1992 – Fellow of the Maryland Bar Foundation in 1992. * 1999 – Rita C. Davidson Award, Women's Bar Association of Maryland * 2000 – Dorothy Beatty Memorial Award, Women's Law Center of Maryland

References

Living people 1950 births People from Salisbury, Maryland Lawrence University alumni University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law alumni Judges of the Supreme Court of Maryland 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges {{Maryland-state-judge-stub