Debra Todd | |
|---|---|
| Chief Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court | |
| Assumed office October 1, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Max Baer |
| Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court | |
| Assumed office January 7, 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Cynthia Baldwin |
| Judge of theSuperior Court of Pennsylvania | |
| In office January 2, 2000 – December 31, 2007 | |
| Succeeded by | John M. Cleland[1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1957-10-15)October 15, 1957 (age 68)[2] |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Chatham University (BA) University of Pittsburgh (JD) University of Virginia (LLM) |
Debra McCloskey Todd (born October 15, 1957) is an American lawyer who serves as the chief justice of theSupreme Court of Pennsylvania.[3] Prior to her election to the Supreme Court in 2007, she served as a judge on theSuperior Court of Pennsylvania from 2000 through 2007. She is a member of theDemocratic Party.
Born inEllwood City, Pennsylvania, on October 15, 1957, as Debra McCloskey, Debra Todd is a daughter of Harry and Blanche McCloskey. She and her sisters, Mary and Nancy, were reared in thatWayne Township borough, which is located inLawrence County. Their father was a steelworker.[4]
She is married to Stephen K. Todd, a former attorney for theUnited States Army who retired from theU.S. Army Reserve at the rank of colonel, and who had been an attorney for U.S. Steel for thirty-one years before retiring in 2007 as vice president of law and environmental affairs.[5]
A 1975 graduate ofLincoln High School in Ellwood City,[6] Todd was awarded aBachelor of Arts degree with honors fromChatham College in 1979, served on the Law Review in 1982 at theUniversity of Pittsburgh School of Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she earned herJuris Doctor that same year, and was then awarded aMaster of Laws from theUniversity of Virginia School of Law in 2004.[7]
Todd worked in private practice from 1982 to 1999. During the fall of 1999, she ran for, and was elected to the position of, judge on the Superior Court of Pennsylvania,[8] serving from January 17, 2000, to December 31, 2007. She was elected to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in 2007.[9][10]
On May 19, 2017, Todd delivered the Charles Widger School of Law’s 2017 Commencement Address at Villanova University, and was also awarded the Villanova Law Medallion Award in recognition of her achievements.[11]
On October 1, 2022, she became the first female chief justice of the state Supreme Court, replacingMax Baer who died a day earlier.[12] Roughly three weeks later, she issued her first major letter to Pennsylvania attorneys, in which she urged them to support pro bono legal work across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[13]
Todd's list of publications includes:[14]
Todd has been the recipient of the following awards:[15]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court 2008–present | Incumbent |
| Preceded by | Chief Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court 2022–present | |
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