Lawton Mainor Chiles Jr. was an American politician and military officer. A member of the Democratic Party,he served as a United States senator from Florida from 1971 to 1989 and as the 41st governor of Florida from 1991 until his death in 1998.
Dorothy Comstock Riley was a lawyer and judge from the U.S. state of Michigan,serving on the Michigan Supreme Court and the first woman to serve on the Michigan Court of Appeals. She was the first Hispanic woman to be elected to the Supreme Court of any state.
Speculation abounded over potential nominations to the Supreme Court of the United States by President George W. Bush since before his presidency.
The Supreme Court of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven justices—one of whom serves as Chief Justice. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geographic diversity,and one is selected at large.
Barbara Joan Pariente is an attorney and jurist from Florida. She was chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court from July 1,2004,until June 30,2006. Pariente is the second woman to hold the position of chief justice and served on the court from 1997 to 2019. From 1993 to 1997 she was a judge on Florida's Fourth District Court of Appeal.
Rosemary Barkett is an American judge of the Iran–United States Claims Tribunal located in The Hague,Netherlands since 2013. Previously,she served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Prior to her nomination for that post,she was chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court.
Deborah Louise Cook is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit,based in Akron,Ohio. She served as a justice of the Ohio Supreme Court from 1995 to 2003.
The number of women in the United States judiciary has increased as more women have entered law school,but women still face significant barriers in pursuing legal careers.
Elizabeth Bermingham Lacy is a Virginia jurist. She was the first woman named to the Virginia State Corporation Commission and later was the first woman named to be a justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia,where she served until her retirement in 2007.
Teresita Leonardo de Castro is a Filipina who served as the 24th chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines;she was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte on August 28,2018. She assumed the vacated position once her predecessor,Maria Lourdes Sereno,was removed via a quo warranto petition;making De Castro the de jure 24th chief justice,and the first female chief justice of the Supreme Court.
Ann Claire Williams is a retired United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and a former United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. She is currently of counsel at Jones Day.
Gerald Bard Tjoflat is an American lawyer and Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. He previously served as a U.S. district judge on the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida from 1970 to 1975 and as a state court judge on the Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida from 1968 to 1970.
Susan Pia Graber is an American attorney and jurist. She is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. A native of Oklahoma,she was the 90th justice of the Oregon Supreme Court from 1990 to 1998. She served on the Oregon Court of Appeals from 1988 to 1990.
Charlene Vanessa Edwards Honeywell is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
Barbara Lagoa is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Prior to becoming a federal judge,she was the first Latina and Cuban American woman appointed to serve as a justice of the Supreme Court of Florida.
Kimberly S. Budd is the chief justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts and former justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court.
Ada Elene Brown is an American lawyer who is a district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas. She is a former trial judge of the Dallas County courts and a former Justice of the Fifth Court of Appeals of Texas. She was the first African-American woman federal judge nominated by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the Senate. She is also the first African American woman to sit as a federal judge in the 140- year-history of the Northern District of Texas.
Women have been underrepresented in all three branches of Texas state government. Texas has had only two female governors over 175 years since statehood,and many prominent executive positions - such as Lieutenant Governor - have yet to be filled by women. While the percentage of women in the Texas Legislature has increased over the past few legislative sessions,as of December 2021,the percentage of female legislators in both the Texas House and the Texas Senate still fell far short of 50.3% - the percentage of women in the overall Texas population. The state's highest courts –the Supreme Court of Texas and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals –have seen similarly low numbers of female justices throughout their history.
