Tennessee Supreme Court picks new chief justice
Justice Holly Kirby began her term as the Tennessee Supreme Court’s newest chief justice last week.
She was elected unanimously by the court to serve a two-year term beginning Friday and is the court’s fourth ever female chief justice, according to a news release from the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Kirby succeeds Justice Roger Page as chief justice.
“I am honored to have been chosen chief justice by my colleagues on the Court,” Justice Kirby said in the news release. “Tennessee has the finest judiciary in the country; our judges are dedicated public servants who serve with integrity. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with all of them to strengthen public confidence in our courts, access to justice for vulnerable citizens, and the rule of law in Tennessee.”
Kirby was the first woman to serve on the Tennessee Court of Appeals. She was appointed in 1995 and stayed there until 2014 when Gov. Bill Haslam appointed her to the Supreme Court. She has won three statewide retention elections since then, in 2022 receiving 73.8% of the vote.
U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn congratulated Kirby on Friday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Her reputation on respecting the rule of law will serve the court system well,” Blackburn wrote.
As chief justice, Kirby, 66, is responsible for the court’s administrative functions, including setting dockets, making designations and ensuring efficiency throughout the state judiciary.
Kirby, a native of Memphis, attended high school in Columbia and earned her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Memphis, making her the first Memphis graduate to serve on the Supreme Court.
Kirby has joined the majority in notable decisions that limited the rights of prisoners to appeal in certain instances, sealed police investigative records in the high-profile 2016 rape case against several Vanderbilt University football players and prohibited mandatory life without parole sentences for juvenile homicide defendants.
Justice Dwight Tarwater also began his term on the Supreme Court on Friday. Gov. Bill Lee appointed Tarwater to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Gov. Phil Bredesen-appointee Justice Sharon Lee, who had been the court’s sole justice appointed by a Democrat in recent years.
Lee will perform Kirby’s ceremonial investiture in the Old Supreme Court Chamber in the Tennessee State Capitol on Oct. 4 at 9 a.m.
Evan Mealins is the justice reporter for The Tennessean. Contact him at emealins@gannett.com or follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @EvanMealins.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Supreme Court picks new chief justice
