List of justices of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Justice Position Succeeded Tenure Appointed by William Cushing
(1732–1810) Chief
Justice Inaugural 1780
–

1789

(Appointed to Supreme Court of the United States)

Nathaniel Sargent
(1731–1791) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1780
–

1791

(Continued as Chief Justice)

David Sewall
(1735–1825) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1780
–

1789

(Appointed to U.S. District Court)

James Sullivan
(1744–1808) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1780
–

1782

(Resigned)

Francis Dana
(1743–1811) Associate
Justice J. Foster

(1779)

1785
–

1806

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Increase Sumner
(1746–1799) Associate
Justice J. Sullivan 1782
–

1787

(Resigned to become Governor)

John Hancock Nathaniel Sargent
(1731–1791) Chief
Justice W. Cushing 1790
–

October 2, 1791

(Died)

Robert Treat Paine
(1731–1814) Associate
Justice D. Sewall 1790
–

1804

(Resigned)

Nathan Cushing Associate
Justice N. Sargent
(as Associate Justice) 1790
–

1800

(Resigned)

Francis Dana
(1743–1811) Chief
Justice N. Sargent
(as Chief Justice) 1791
–

1806

(Resigned)

Thomas Dawes
(1731–1809) Associate
Justice F. Dana 1792
–

1802

(Resigned)

Theophilus Bradbury
(1739–1803) Associate
Justice I. Sumner 1797
–

July 1803

(Removed due to poor health)

Samuel Sewall
(1750–1814) Associate
Justice N. Cushing 1800
–

1814

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Caleb Strong Theodore Sedgwick
(1746–1813) Associate
Justice T. Dawes 1802
–

January 24, 1813

(Died)

Simeon Strong
(1735–1805) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1801
–

1805

(Died)

George Thatcher
(1754–1824) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1801
–

January 1824

(Resigned)

Theophilus Parsons
(1750–1813) Chief
Justice F. Dana 1806
–

October 13, 1813

(Died)

Isaac Parker
(1768–1830) Associate
Justice S. Strong 1806
–

1814

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Charles Jackson
(1768–1830) Associate
Justice T. Sedgwick 1813
–

1823

(Resigned)

Samuel Sewall
(1750–1814) Chief
Justice T. Parsons 1814
–

June 8, 1814

(Died)

Daniel Dewey
(1766–1815) Associate
Justice S. Sewall 1814
–

May 26, 1815

(Died)

Samuel Putnam Associate
Justice I. Parker
(as Associate Justice) 1814
–

1842

(Resigned)

Isaac Parker
(1768–1830) Chief
Justice S. Sewall 1814
–

July 25, 1830

(Died)

Samuel Wilde
(1771–1855) Associate
Justice D. Dewey 1815
–

1850

(Resigned)

Levi Lincoln Jr.
(1782–1868) Associate
Justice G. Thatcher 1824
–

1825

(Elected Governor)

William Eustis Marcus Morton
(1784–1864) Associate
Justice L. Lincoln Jr. 1825
–

1840

(Elected Governor)

Levi Lincoln Jr. Lemuel Shaw
(1781–1861) Chief
Justice I. Parker August 30, 1830
–

August 21, 1860

(Resigned)

Charles Augustus Dewey
(d. 1866) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1837
–

1866

(Died)

Edward Everett Samuel Hubbard
(d. 1847) Associate
Justice S. Putnam 1842
–

1847

(Died)

John Davis Theron Metcalf
(1784–1875) Associate
Justice M. Morton I

(1840)

1848
–

1865

(Resigned)

George N. Briggs Charles Forbes Associate
Justice 1848
–

1848

(Resigned)

Richard Fletcher
(1788–1869) Associate
Justice C. Forbes 1848
–

1853

(Resigned)

George Tyler Bigelow Associate
Justice S. Wilde 1850
–

1860

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Caleb Cushing
(1800–1879) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1852
–

1853

(Appointed U.S. Attorney General)

George S. Boutwell Benjamin Thomas
(1813–1878) Associate
Justice R. Fletcher 1853
–

1859

(Resigned)

John H. Clifford Pliny Merrick
(1794–1867) Associate
Justice 1853
–

1864

(Resigned)

Ebenezer R. Hoar
(1801–1873) Associate
Justice J. Nolan 1859
–

1869

(Appointed U.S. Attorney General)

Nathaniel Prentice Banks George Tyler Bigelow Chief
Justice L. Shaw 1860
–

1867

(Resigned)

Reuben Atwater Chapman
(1801–1873) Associate
Justice 1860
–

1868

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Horace Gray
(1828–1902) Associate
Justice N. Clifford 1864
–

September 15, 1873

(Continued as Chief Justice)

John Albion Andrew James Denison Colt
(1819–1881) Associate
Justice T. Metcalf 1865
–

1866

(Resigned)

Dwight Foster
(1828–1884) Associate
Justice C. A. Dewey 1866
–

1869

(Resigned)

Alexander H. Bullock John Wells
(d. 1875) Associate
Justice J. D. Colt 1866
–

1875

(Died)

Reuben Atwater Chapman
(1801–1873) Chief
Justice G. T. Bigelow 1868
–

June 28, 1873

(Died)

James Denison Colt
(1819–1881) Associate
Justice R. A. Chapman 1868
–

1881

(Died)

Marcus Morton II
(1819–1891) Associate
Justice E. Hoar 1869
–

1882

(Continued as Chief Justice)

William Claflin Seth Ames Associate
Justice D. Foster 1869
–

1881

(Resigned)

Horace Gray
(1828–1902) Chief
Justice R. A. Chapman September 15, 1873
–

January 9, 1882

(Appointed to Supreme Court of the United States)

William B. Washburn Charles Devens
(1820–1891) Associate
Justice H. Gray 1873
–

1877

(Appointed U.S. Attorney General)

William Endicott
(1826–1900) Associate
Justice Inaugural 1873
–

1882

(Resigned)

Otis Lord
(1812–1884) Associate
Justice J. Wells 1875
–

1882

(Resigned)

William Gaston Augustus Soule
(1827–1887) Associate
Justice March 27, 1877
–
April 11, 1881
(Resigned) Alexander H. Rice Walbridge A. Field
(1833–1899) Associate
Justice S. Ames 1881
–

September 4, 1890

(Continued as Chief Justice)

John D. Long William Allen Associate
Justice 1881
–

1891

(Died)

Charles Devens
(1820–1891) Associate
Justice A. Soule 1881
–

1891

(Died)

Marcus Morton II
(1819–1891) Chief
Justice H. Gray 1882
–

1890

(Resigned)

Waldo Colburn
(1824–1885) Associate
Justice W. C. Endicott November 10, 1882
–

September 26, 1885

(Died)

Charles Allen
(1819–1891) Associate
Justice M. Morton II 1882
–

1898

(Resigned)

Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
(1833–1899) Associate
Justice O. Lord 1882
–

1899

(Continued as Chief Justice)

William Gardner Associate
Justice 1885
–

1887

(Resigned)

George D. Robinson Marcus Perrin Knowlton
(1839–1918) Associate
Justice W. Gardner 1887
–

1902

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Oliver Ames Walbridge A. Field
(1833–1899) Chief
Justice M. Morton September 4, 1890
–

July 15, 1899

(Died)

John Q. A. Brackett James Madison Morton Sr. Associate
Justice 1890
–

1913

(Resigned)

James Barker
(1839–1905) Associate
Justice W. Allen 1891
–

October 2, 1905

(Died)

William Russell John Lathrop Associate
Justice 1891
–

1906

(Resigned)

John Hammond Associate
Justice 1898
–

1914

(Resigned)

Roger Wolcott Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
(1833–1899) Chief
Justice W. A. Field August 2, 1899
–

December 4, 1902

(Appointed to Supreme Court of the United States)

William Loring
(1851–1930) Associate
Justice O. W. Holmes September 7, 1899
–
September 16, 1919
(Resigned) Henry Braley Associate
Justice 1902
–

1929

(Died)

Winthrop M. Crane Marcus Perrin Knowlton
(1839–1918) Chief
Justice O. W. Holmes 1902
–

September 7, 1911

(Resigned)

Henry Sheldon Associate
Justice Barker 1905
–

1915

(Resigned)

William Lewis Douglas Arthur Prentice Rugg
(1862–1938) Associate
Justice J. Lathrop 1906
–

1911

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Curtis Guild Jr. Arthur Prentice Rugg
(1862–1938) Chief
Justice M. P. Knowlton 1911
–

June 12, 1938

(Died)

Eugene Foss Charles Decourcy

(d. 1924)

Associate
Justice 1911
–

1924

(Died)

John C. Crosby
(1859–1943) Associate
Justice J. Morton December 31, 1913
–

October 1, 1937

(Resigned)

David I. Walsh Edward Pierce Associate
Justice 1914
–

1937

(Resigned)

James Carroll

(d. 1932)

Associate
Justice Sheldon 1915
–

1932

(Died)

Charles Jenney
(1860–1923) Associate
Justice W. Loring 1919
–

November 29, 1923

(Died)

Calvin Coolidge William C. Wait Associate
Justice 1923
–

1934

(Resigned)

Channing H. Cox George A. Sanderson

(d. 1932)

Associate
Justice 1924
–

1932

(Died)

Fred Tarbell Field
(1876–1950) Associate
Justice H. Braley January 30, 1929
–

June 30, 1938

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Frank G. Allen Charles Donahue
(1877–1952) Associate
Justice March 17, 1932
–

April 26, 1944

(Resigned)

Joseph B. Ely Henry Lummus Associate
Justice 1932
–

1955

Stanley Elroy Qua
(1880–1965) Associate
Justice 1934
–

1947

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Arthur Dolan
(1876–1949) Associate
Justice J. C. Crosby 1937
–

August 20, 1949

(Resigned)

Charles F. Hurley Louis Cox Associate
Justice Edward Pierce 1937
–

1944

Fred Tarbell Field
(1876–1950) Chief
Justice A. P. Rugg June 30, 1938
–

July 24, 1947

(Resigned)

James Ronan Associate
Justice F. T. Field 1938
–

1959

(Died)

Raymond Sanger Wilkins Associate
Justice L. Cox 1944
–

1956

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Leverett Saltonstall John Spalding Associate
Justice Donahue 1944
–

1971

Stanley Elroy Qua
(1880–1965) Chief
Justice F. T. Field 1947
–

1956

(Resigned)

Robert F. Bradford Harold P. Williams
(1882–1963) Associate
Justice S. Qua 1947
–

1962

(Resigned)

Edward Counihan Associate
Justice Dolan 1949
–

1960

Paul A. Dever Arthur Whittemore
(1896–1969) Associate
Justice H. Lummus October 1955
–

October 1, 1969

(Died)

Christian Herter Raymond Sanger Wilkins Chief
Justice S. E. Qua 1956
–

1970

(Resigned)

R. Ammi Cutter Associate
Justice 1956
–

1972

Paul G. Kirk Sr.
(1905–1981) Associate
Justice E. Counihan November 23, 1960
–
December 15, 1970
(Resigned) Foster Furcolo Jacob Spiegel Associate
Justice Ronan 1960
–

1972

G. Joseph Tauro
(1906–1994) Associate
Justice 1961
–

1970

(Continued as Chief Justice)

John Volpe Paul Reardon Associate
Justice H. P. Williams 1962
–

1977

G. Joseph Tauro
(1906–1994) Chief
Justice R. S. Wilkins 1970
–

1976

(Mandatory retirement)

Francis Quirico Associate
Justice 1969
–

1981

Francis W. Sargent Robert Braucher
(1916–1981) Associate
Justice P. Kirk January 18, 1971
–

August 26, 1981

(Died)

Edward F. Hennessey
(1919–2007) Associate
Justice J. Spalding 1971
–

1976

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Benjamin Kaplan
(1911–2010) Associate
Justice R. A. Cutter 1972
–

1981

(Mandatory retirement)

Herbert P. Wilkins Associate
Justice J. Spiegel 1972
–

1996

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Edward F. Hennessey
(1919–2007) Chief
Justice G. J. Tauro 1976
–

1989

(Mandatory retirement)

Michael Dukakis Paul J. Liacos
(1929–1999) Associate
Justice E. Hennessey 1976
–

June 20, 1986

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Ruth Abrams
(1930–2019) Associate
Justice P. Reardon 1978
–

2000

(Mandatory retirement)

Joseph R. Nolan
(1925–2013) Associate
Justice Quirico 1981
–

1995

(Mandatory retirement)

Edward J. King Neil L. Lynch Associate
Justice Kaplan 1981
–

2000

Francis Patrick O’Connor
(1927–2007) Associate
Justice R. Braucher 1981
–

1997

(Mandatory retirement)

Paul J. Liacos
(1929–1999) Chief
Justice E. Hennessey June 20, 1986
–

September 30, 1996

(Resigned)

Michael Dukakis John M. Greaney
(1939–) Associate
Justice P. Liacos 1989
–

2008

(Resigned)

Charles Fried
(1944–) Associate
Justice J. Nolan September 1995
–

June 1999

(Resigned)

William Weld Margaret H. Marshall
(1944–) Associate
Justice 1996
–

October 14, 1999

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Herbert P. Wilkins Chief
Justice P. Liacos 1996
–

October 13, 1999

(Resigned)

Roderick L. Ireland
(1944–) Associate
Justice 1997
–

December 20, 2010

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Margaret H. Marshall
(1944–) Chief
Justice H. Wilkins October 14, 1999
–

October 31, 2010

(Resigned)

Paul Cellucci Judith Cowin
(1942–) Associate
Justice C. Fried 1999
–

2011

(Resigned)

Francis X. Spina
(1946–) Associate
Justice M. Marshall 1999
–

August 12, 2016

(Mandatory retirement)

Martha B. Sosman
(1950–2007) Associate
Justice N. Lynch 2000
–

March 10, 2007

(Died)

Robert J. Cordy
(1949–) Associate
Justice R. Abrams 2001
–

August 12, 2016

(Resigned)

Margot Botsford
(1947–) Associate
Justice M. Sosman September 4, 2007
–

March 15, 2017

(Mandatory retirement)

Deval Patrick Ralph Gants
(1954–2020) Associate
Justice J. Greaney January 29, 2009
–

July 28, 2014

(Continued as Chief Justice)

Roderick L. Ireland
(1944–) Chief
Justice M. Marshall December 20, 2010
–

July 25, 2014

(Mandatory retirement)

Barbara Lenk
(1950–) Associate
Justice J. Cowin June 8, 2011
–

December 1, 2020

(Mandatory retirement)

Fernande R.V. Duffly
(1949–) Associate
Justice R. Ireland February 1, 2011
–

July 12, 2016

(Resigned)

Ralph Gants
(1954–2020) Chief
Justice R. Ireland July 28, 2014
–
September 14, 2020^[2][3]
(Died) Geraldine Hines
(1947–) Associate
Justice R. Gants July 31, 2014
–
August 18, 2017
(Mandatory retirement) Frank Gaziano
(born 1963) Associate
Justice F. Spina August 18, 2016
–
Incumbent Charlie Baker Kimberly S. Budd
(1966–) Associate
Justice F. Duffly August 24, 2016
–
December 1, 2020
(Continued as Chief Justice) David A. Lowy
(1959/60–) Associate
Justice R. Cordy August 24, 2016
–
Incumbent Elspeth B. Cypher
(born 1959) Associate
Justice M. Botsford March 31, 2017
–
Incumbent Scott Kafker
(born 1959) Associate
Justice G. Hines August 21, 2017
–
Incumbent Kimberly S. Budd
(born 1966) Chief
Justice R. Gants December 1, 2020
–
Incumbent Dalila Argaez Wendlandt
(1968/69–) Associate
Justice B. Lenk December 4, 2020
–
Incumbent Serge Georges Jr.
(1969/70–) Associate
Justice K. Budd December 16, 2020
–
Incumbent