Chief Justice Marla Luckert will resign from the office of chief justice on January 2, but she will remain as a justice on the Supreme Court until she retires on a date to be announced.
The Kansas Constitution includes a provision that allows Luckert to step back from her duties as chief justice while she continues to serve as justice. She said it is her intent to finish work on cases she heard before mid-October, when she took medical leave following a stroke.
Luckert said her decision to step back as chief justice and ultimately retire from the Supreme Court was made through careful deliberation, both individually and with her family, and it was not without hesitation.
LINK: Video message from Chief Justice Marla Lukert
“When I left Goodland to attend college and law school, I never imagined I would serve on the Supreme Court or as chief justice,” she said. “I achieved far more than I imagined I would as a young woman from rural Kansas, and it has been my great honor to serve Kansans as a judge, justice, and chief justice.”
Luckert was the second woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court and the second to serve as chief justice. She said the privilege to engage in work she loves made her decision to step back and ultimately retire more difficult. She added that knowing she leaves the court in good hands made her decision easier.
Justice Eric Rosen, who has served recently as acting chief justice, will formally step into the chief justice role on January 2. The role is reserved for the justice who has the most continuous years of service on the court.
“Justice Rosen and I have served side by side for more than 20 years, and I appreciate his leadership serving as acting chief justice these last few months,” Luckert said. “It reassures me to know I will transfer responsibility to his very capable hands.”
Luckert and Rosen both served as district judges in the 3rd Judicial District, a one-county district composed of Shawnee County, before they were appointed to the Supreme Court in 2002 and 2005.
Rosen said he’s grateful for his years working with Luckert and for her guiding influence as chief justice. He noted her efforts to build and strengthen relationships within state government and for ushering the court system through adversity.
“Her tenure as chief justice was fraught with challenge, but she managed it all with unflappable grace,” he said. “Not only did she help us overcome major obstacles, but she also made our court system stronger, more resilient, and better prepared for the future. I will greatly miss her as a colleague and confidant, but she will always remain both a professional and close personal friend.”
Luckert said she will also resign from her roles on national committees. She currently is chair of the Civil Justice Committee and a member of the Access and Fairness Committees, both of which are joint ventures involving the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators.
She will also resign her position on the Committee on Federal-State Jurisdiction, which is part of the Judicial Conference of the United States, and her service is on the invitation of Chief Justice John Roberts.
Luckert is a fourth-generation native of Sherman County. She has been a Shawnee County resident since enrolling at Washburn University for her undergraduate studies. She earned a bachelor's degree in history and a law degree from Washburn University School of Law.
After working 12 years in private practice, she was appointed a district judge for the 3rd Judicial District in 1992. She later served as the district’s chief judge, a role she held for three years. She was the first woman in Kansas appointed to a chief judge role.