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Fernande Duffly announces retirement from Supreme Judicial Court

Boston Globe file photo

By Amanda Hoover @amahoover

February 10, 2016

1 minute to read

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice Fernande R.V. Duffly announced Wednesday that she will retire from the court in July, according to a statement from the Massachusetts Court System.

“It has been a privilege to serve as a jurist in the Trial Court, the Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court,’’ Duffly said in the statement. “My years on the bench confirm for me that broad and diverse perspectives make an enormous contribution to the decision making process.’’

Duffly said she is leaving the court earlier than she planned to care for her husband, who recently had surgery. She’s the third Justice on the court to announce retirement in the past week, following Justice Robert Cordy and Justice Francis X. Spina.

Both Cordy and Duffly are 66 — four years short of the mandatory retirement age of 70. In addition to Spina, who turns 70 this fall, two other justice will reach the age of 70 by October 2017. That opens five of the seven SJC positions to Gov. Charlie Baker’s appointees.

Born in Indonesia, Duffly began her career as an attorney in 1978 and served as a probate and family court judge from 1992 to 2000. Prior to her 2011 appointment to the SJC by former Gov. Deval Patrick, she served as a a judge for the Massachusetts Appeals Court.

In December, Duffly was recognized with the Justice in Action award, according to the statement. She was recently elected to Harvard University Board of Overseers for a six-year term.

“In her five years on the Supreme Judicial Court, Justice Duffly has been a dedicated and thoughtful jurist, and an admired friend and colleague,’’ SJC Chief Justice Ralph D. Gants said in the statement. “Informed by her own unique life experience, she has brought to her judicial work a keen insight into the challenges faced by immigrants, women, and persons of color. In her national leadership roles, including as a past President of the National Association of Women Judges, she has been a frequent lecturer, mentor and role model to women judges and lawyers in this country and around the world. I will miss her friendship, her wisdom, and her generosity of spirit.’’