Joan L. Larsen, a University of Michigan legal expert with experience with the U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Justice Department, has been appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Gov. Rick Snyder.
Larsen, of Scio Township, fills the vacancy created by the resignation of Justice Mary Beth Kelly.
“Joan is a superb attorney who brings experience from the highest levels of government, private practice and academia to the state’s highest court,” Snyder said. “She is highly regarded by her peers, and is a nationally recognized constitutional scholar. I’m confident she’ll be an invaluable addition to the Michigan Supreme Court.”
Larsen serves as law professor and special counsel to the dean at the University of Michigan Law School. Before that, she was deputy assistant attorney general in the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel. She has also taught at Northwestern University School of Law. Larsen began her career as a law clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She then served as law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia for two years. She followed her clerkship into private practice with the law firm Sidley & Austin in Washington, D.C.
Larsen has written extensively on the Constitution, international law, the judicial system, and separation of powers. She is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Bar Association of the District of Columbia. Larsen earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Northern Iowa in 1990 and received her law degree from Northwestern University School of Law in 1993, ranking first in her class.
Supreme Court justices serve eight-year terms. Incoming Justice Larsen will have to seek election in 2016 for the remainder of Justice Kelly’s term that expires at the end of 2018, and could run in 2018 for a full eight-year term.
Larsen is married to Adam Pritchard and the couple has two children, Elizabeth “Liza,” age 15, and Benjamin “Ben”, age 10.
Under Article VI, Section 23 of the state constitution, the appointment belongs to the governor alone.
Gov. Snyder has also appointed Colleen O’Brien, an Oakland Circuit Court judge with more than 30 years of legal experience, to the Michigan Court of Appeals by Gov. Rick Snyder.
“Collen has served with distinction in one of the state’s largest trial courts for 16 years handling complex civil, criminal, and family law cases,” Snyder said. “As the president of the Michigan Judges Association, she is an important leader in our state’s judiciary. Her personal integrity, widely respected legal acumen, and substantial judicial experience will be of great benefit to the Court of Appeals and the people of Michigan.”
O’Brien, of Clarkston, fills the vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Pat Donofrio. She must seek election in 2016 in order to serve a full, six-year term.
O’Brien has been on the 6th Circuit Court in Oakland County since being elected in 1998 and is the presiding judge of the Oakland Civil-Criminal Division. Prior to serving as a judge, O’Brien was in private practice as an attorney at Cummings, McClorey, Davis & Achos in Southfield and has experience with three other Detroit-area law firms.
In addition to her judicial experience, O’Brien has been active in a number of community groups serving families and children, including serving as an adviser to Crossroads for Youth, a nonprofit treatment agency that serves at-risk children facing a variety of challenges. She is a member of the Michigan Interagency Council on Homelessness, a former member of the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan Board of Directors and is former president of the Oakland County Women’s Bar Association.
She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and received her law degree from Detroit College of Law in 1981.
O’Brien is married to Thomas J. Cory and has two children, Meghan and Mark.
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