Shirley S. Abrahamson - Biographical Notes

Shirley Abrahamson has led the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the state court system as Chief Justice since 1996. U.S. Chief Justice William Rehnquist, a Wisconsin native, presided over her swearing-in ceremony as Chief Justice.

The seven-member, elected Court has been recognized by a prominent law review and other legal publications for the national impact of its decisions.

The Chief Justice recently marked her 50th anniversary as a lawyer, her 30th year on the Supreme Court, and her 10th year as Chief Justice. She began practicing law in Wisconsin with a small firm in Madison in 1962, and Governor Patrick J. Lucey appointed her to the Supreme Court in 1976. Since then, she has traveled to every county in the state, frequently meeting with Sheriffs, District Attorneys, Police Chiefs, and business and civic leaders to discuss the judicial system. Under her leadership, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has conducted oral arguments in 17 different cities to enhance access to the judicial process for everyone.

Wisconsin has always elected its Supreme Court Justices. Shirley won her first statewide election (after her appointment) in 1979, and she was re-elected in 1989 and in 1999, each time with opposition. In her last election, she won 63 percent of the vote, carrying every county but one. The Chief Justice lectures at the state's two law schools, at Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and she speaks regularly at service organizations, civic clubs, and charitable organizations around the state. She has read stories to elementary school children, visited high school classrooms, spoken for the liberal arts at colleges across the state, and ridden with Law Enforcement on patrol in communities large and small.

Among her accomplishments, Shirley has:

Shirley and her husband, Seymour, have been married for 54 years. They have a son, a daughter-in-law, and a 4-year-old grandchild.