Roderick L. Ireland

Roderick L. Ireland
Ireland in 2013
Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
In office
December 20, 2010  July 25, 2014
Appointed byDeval Patrick
Preceded byMargaret H. Marshall
Succeeded byRalph Gants
Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
In office
1997  December 19, 2010
Appointed byBill Weld
Succeeded byFernande R.V. Duffly
Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court
In office
1990–1997
Appointed byMichael Dukakis
Personal details
Born (1944-12-03) December 3, 1944
Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma materLincoln University (BA)
Columbia University (JD)
Harvard University (LLM)
Northeastern University (PhD)

Roderick L. Ireland (born December 3, 1944) served as the 36th Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, and was the first African American to serve that position. He was nominated for Chief Justice by Governor Deval Patrick on November 4, 2010, and sworn in on December 20. He retired from service on the court on July 25, 2014.