Lawton Mainor Chiles Jr. was an American politician who served as the 41st governor of Florida from 1991 until his death in 1998. A member of the Democratic Party,he previously served as a United States senator from Florida from 1971 to 1989.
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 members:the chief justice and six justices. Five members are chosen from five districts around the state to foster geographic diversity,and two are 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 a Mexican-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.
Charlotte E. Ray was an American lawyer. She was the first black American female lawyer in the United States. Ray graduated from Howard University School of Law in 1872. She was also the first female admitted to the District of Columbia Bar,and the first woman admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia. Her admission was used as a precedent by women in other states who sought admission to the bar.
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 "Tess" Leonardo-De Castro is a Filipina who served as the 24th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines;appointed by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on August 28,2018. She assumed the vacated position since her predecessor,Maria Lourdes Sereno,was removed via a quo warranto petition;making De Castro the de jure 24th chief justice,making her the official first female chief justice of the Supreme Court.
Ricky L. Polston has been a justice of the Florida Supreme Court since his appointment in 2008 and was the chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court from July 2012 to June 2014. He is a graduate of Florida State University College of Law.
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 Associate Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court,and served on the Oregon Court of Appeals.
Charlene Vanessa Edwards Honeywell is a 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.
Wilhelmina Marie Wright is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota. She is the only jurist in Minnesota's history to be State District Court Judge,Appellate Court Judge and state Supreme Court justice. She was formerly an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court,a judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals,and a Judge of the Minnesota District Court,Second Judicial District.
Mandisa Muriel Lindelwa Maya Mlokoti is the first female South African Deputy Chief Justice. She is also the first female jurist who has served as President of the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa (SCA) since 26 May 2017 until 31 August 2022 and the first female chancellor of University of Mpumalanga since 1 July 2021. She had previously served as a judge in the Mthatha High Court,as a puisne judge of the SCA and as Deputy President of the SCA,as well as holding acting positions in various courts.
Robin Ransom is an American lawyer who serves as a judge of the Supreme Court of Missouri. She was appointed to the court in 2021 by Governor Mike Parson,and is the first African-American woman to hold the position. Prior to her appointment to the Supreme Court,Ransom served on the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Eastern District from 2019 to 2021 and served on the St. Louis Circuit Court from 2008 to 2019.
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.
