SOTS: Chief Justices

Chief Justices

CHIEF JUSTICES

The highest court in Connecticut was the General Assembly, until 1784, when it relinquished its functions as an appellate tribunal to the upper house, which, when sitting for these purposes, was designated as the Supreme Court of Errors. The presiding officer or Chief Judge was at first the Deputy Governor, and later the Governor. In 1807 the membership of this court was completely changed by substituting, under an Act of the preceding year, the Judges of the Superior Court, the Chief Judge of which became the presiding officer. The customary appellation was for some years, Chief Judge, but in the Constitution of 1818 the term Chief Justice was employed and confirmed a practice already established in that respect.

Chief Judge Town Term Beginning Term Ending
Gurdon Saltonstall New London 1711 1712
Nathan Gold Fairfield 1712 1713
William Pitkin Hartford 1713 1714
Nathan Gold Fairfield 1714 1723
Peter Burr Fairfield 1723 1725
Jonathan Law Milford 1725 1741
Roger Wolcott Windsor 1741 1750
Thomas Fitch Norwalk 1750 1754
William Pitkin Hartford 1754 1766
Jonathan Trumbull Lebanon 1766 1769
Matthew Griswold Lyme 1769 1784
Samuel Huntington Norwich 1784 1785
Richard Law New London 1785 1789
Eliphalet Dyer Windham 1789 1793
Andrew Adams Litchfield 1793 1798
Jesse Root Hartford 1798 1807

 

THE FOLLOWING IS A LIST OF CHIEF JUSTICES SINCE THE

PRESENT FORM OF ORGANIZATION WAS ADOPTED

 

Chief Judge Town Term Beginning Term Ending
Stephen Mix Mitchell Wethersfield 1807 1814
Tapping Reeve Litchfield 1814 1815
Zephaniah Swift Windham 1815 1819
Stephen Titus Hosmer Middletown 1819 1833
David Daggett New Haven 1833 1834
Thomas Scott Williams Hartford 1834 1847
Samuel Church Sharon 1847 1854
Henry Matson Waite Lyme 1854 1857
William Lucius Storrs Hartford 1857 1861
Joel Hinman Waterbury 1861 1870
Thomas Belden Butler Norwalk 1870 1873
Origen Storrs Seymour Litchfield 1873 1874
John Duane Park Norwich 1874 1889
Charles B. Andrews Litchfield 1889 1901
David Torrance Derby 1901 1907
Simeon E. Baldwin New Haven 1907 1910
Frederic B. Hall Bridgeport 1910 1913
Samuel O. Prentice Hartford 1913 1920
George W. Wheeler Bridgeport 1920 1930
William M. Maltbie Granby 1930 1950
Allyn L. Brown Norwich 1950 1953
Ernest A. Inglis Middletown 1953 1957
Patrick B. O'Sullivan1 Orange 1957 1957
Kenneth Wynne2 Woodbridge 1957 1958
Edward J. Daly3 Hartford 1958 1959
Raymond E. Baldwin4 Middletown 1959 1963
John Hamilton King5 Willimantic 1963 1970
Howard Wells Alcorn6 Suffield 1970 1971
Charles S. House7 Manchester 1971 1978
John P. Cotter8 West Hartford 1978 1981
Joseph W. Bogdanski9 Meriden 1981 1981
John A. Speziale10 Torrington 1981 1984
Ellen A. Peters11 West Hartford 1984 1996
Robert J. Callahan12 Norwalk 1996 1999
Francis M. McDonald, Jr.13 Waterbury 1999 2001
William J. Sullivan14 Waterbury 2001 2006
Chase T. Rogers15 New Canaan 2007  

 

1Appointed Chief Justice effective April 16, 1957; retired by limitation of age on August 11, 1957.

2Appointed Chief Justice effective August 11, 1957 in succession to Patrick B. O'Sullivan.

3Appointed Chief Justice effective May 6, 1958 in succession to Kenneth Wynne, who retired by limitation of age on May 5, 1958.

4Appointed Chief Justice by the Governor, July 24, 1959 in succession to Edward J. Daly who died July 20, 1959.

5Appointed Chief Justice effective August 31, 1963 in succession to Raymond E. Baldwin, who retired by limitation of age on said date.

6Appointed Chief Justice effective April 21, 1970 in succession to John Hamilton King, who retired by limitation of age on said date.

7Appointed Chief Justice effective May 14, 1971 in succession to Howard Wells Alcorn, who retired by limitation of age on said date.

8Appointed Chief Justice effective April 24, 1978 in succession to Charles S. House, who retired by limitation of age on said date.

9Appointed Chief Justice effective March 2, 1981 in succession to John P. Cotter, who retired by limitation of age on said date.

10Appointed Chief Justice effective November 12, 1981 in succession to Joseph W. Bogdanski, who retired by limitation of age on said date.

11Appointed Chief Justice effective November 21, 1984 in succession to John A. Speziale, who retired on said date.

12Appointed Chief Justice effective September 1, 1996 in succession to Ellen A. Peters who retired on said date.

13Appointed Chief Justice effective September 15, 1999 in succession to Robert J. Callahan, who retired as Chief Justice on said date.

14Appointed Chief Justice effective January 22, 2001 in succession to Frances M. McDonald, Jr., who retired as Chief Justice on said date. William J. Sullivan retired as Chief Justice and became a Senior Justice on April 15, 2006. Because no successor Chief Justice had been appointed as of that date, Justice David M. Borden, the Senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, exercised the powers and authority of the office of Chief Justice, pursuant to Section 51-3 of the Connecticut General Statutes.

15Appointed Chief Justice effective April 25, 2007.



Content Last Modified on 1/28/2008 9:24:12 AM