Maine’s new Chief Justice was confirmed on June 3 by the State Senate.
Honorable Valerie Stanfill of Wayne, who was nominated by governor Janet Mills on May 10. The vote was unanimous, as it was when her name was put forward for the vote by the state legislature’s Judiciary Committee.
She replaces former Chief Justice Leigh Saufley, who left the court to become dean of the law school of the University of Maine last year.
Justice Andrew Mead, an associate justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, had been acting as the Chief Justice since Leigh Saufley resigned from the position.
Since February 2020, Justice Stanfill has served on the Maine Superior Court presiding over Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin Counties, a position to which Governor Mills nominated her. Prior to that appointment, she served on the Maine District Court from January 2007 to February 2020. Justice Stanfill was first nominated to the District Court by Governor John Baldacci.
In a statement, Governor Janet Mills said: “The unanimous vote to confirm Justice Stanfill is a recognition of her sharp intellect, vast legal experience, and commitment to administering justice fairly and impartially.
”I firmly believe that she will be an exceptional Chief Justice and that the Court will benefit considerably from her skills and expertise. I congratulate Justice Stanfill and look forward to swearing her in so she can take the helm of Maine’s Judicial Branch.”
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