A new era in Indiana’s judicial system began Monday as Loretta Rush was sworn in as Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court. She becomes the first woman to lead the state’s highest court.
The Judicial Nominating Commission earlier this month chose Rush to replace outgoing Chief Justice Brent Dickson, who announced in June he would step down as Chief but remain on the Court until his mandatory retirement in 2016.
Rush is only the state’s second female Supreme Court Justice and its first female Chief Justice. Gov. Mike Pence acknowledged the historic nature of her role but said, more importantly, she was the best choice.
“Her commitment to the dutiful application of the law, her careful adherence to precedence, combined with her irrepressible energy, her dignity, her work ethic has all laid a foundation that’s commanded the respect of her peers and I know will serve her well in her new role,” Pence said.
Rush says she’s proud to be the state’s first female Chief Justice and points out that half of the state’s law students are now women.
“I think it’s important that, to get that public trust within our system, we need to encourage and promote diversity within our profession,” Rush said.
She says she looks forward to building on the work done by previous chief justices in making the state’s judiciary more open and accessible.
