By Alethia Kasben
Gongwer News Service
Andrew Lievense will replace Judge Kirsten Frank Kelly on the First District of the Court of Appeals, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced on Wednesday.
Lievense of Northville is an assistant United States attorney and previously served an associate in the litigation department at Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, & Cohn in Detroit and as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge Avern Cohn.
Kelly just won reelection in 2024 and is only in year two of the six-year term. Lievense will need to run for election in November 2026 to serve the remainder of Kelly’s term.
“Today, I am proud to appoint Andrew Lievense to the bench,” Whitmer said in a statement. “As a skilled legal professional, Andrew brings years of experience to his new role. I am confident he will serve the people of Michigan admirably and uphold the rule of law.”
Lievense holds a Bachelor of Arts in politics and government and Spanish from Ohio Wesleyan University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School.
“I am honored to serve the people of Michigan as a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals, and grateful to Governor Whitmer for the responsibility she has entrusted to me,” Lievense said in a statement.
With Wednesday’s appointment, Whitmer has appointed 11 of the 25 Court of Appeals judges (subscribers please note, a previous story had the wrong number of Whitmer appointees).
The administration began accepting applications for the judgeship in December 2025. Under a law signed in 2012 by former Gov. Rick Snyder, the First District of the Court of Appeals would have been reduced to six judges if Kelly had not sought reelection in 2024. Kelly getting reelected and then resigning allowed Whitmer to appoint a replacement and keep seven judges in the First District.
The remaining districts of the Court of Appeals have six judges.
Gongwer News Service
Andrew Lievense will replace Judge Kirsten Frank Kelly on the First District of the Court of Appeals, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced on Wednesday.
Lievense of Northville is an assistant United States attorney and previously served an associate in the litigation department at Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, & Cohn in Detroit and as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge Avern Cohn.
Kelly just won reelection in 2024 and is only in year two of the six-year term. Lievense will need to run for election in November 2026 to serve the remainder of Kelly’s term.
“Today, I am proud to appoint Andrew Lievense to the bench,” Whitmer said in a statement. “As a skilled legal professional, Andrew brings years of experience to his new role. I am confident he will serve the people of Michigan admirably and uphold the rule of law.”
Lievense holds a Bachelor of Arts in politics and government and Spanish from Ohio Wesleyan University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School.
“I am honored to serve the people of Michigan as a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals, and grateful to Governor Whitmer for the responsibility she has entrusted to me,” Lievense said in a statement.
With Wednesday’s appointment, Whitmer has appointed 11 of the 25 Court of Appeals judges (subscribers please note, a previous story had the wrong number of Whitmer appointees).
The administration began accepting applications for the judgeship in December 2025. Under a law signed in 2012 by former Gov. Rick Snyder, the First District of the Court of Appeals would have been reduced to six judges if Kelly had not sought reelection in 2024. Kelly getting reelected and then resigning allowed Whitmer to appoint a replacement and keep seven judges in the First District.
The remaining districts of the Court of Appeals have six judges.
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