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| Judge Melanie L. Cradle |
Judge W. Glen Pierson |
On June 15, Governor Ned Lamont announced his nomination of Connecticut Appellate Court Chief Judge Melanie L. Cradle for the forthcoming vacant associate justice seat on the Connecticut Supreme Court that is currently held by Justice Joan K. Alexander. Justice Alexander will be resigning from her seat on the Supreme Court effective August 1 to serve full-time as Connecticut’s chief court administrator, a role which she has been fulfilling simultaneously with her seat on the Supreme Court since late last year. Additionally, Governor Lamont announced that he has nominated Connecticut Superior Court Judge W. Glen Pierson to fill the vacancy on the Appellate Court that will be created by Judge Cradle’s elevation to the Supreme Court.
Prior to joining the Appellate Court, Judge Cradle was a judge of the Superior Court from 2013 to 2020, and during this time presided over criminal cases in the Bridgeport Judicial District and the New Haven Judicial District. She was appointed to the position of presiding judge of the New Haven Geographical Area courthouse in 2015 and continued to serve in that capacity until her appointment to the Appellate Court. Before becoming a judge, she was a senior assistant state’s attorney for the Ansonia/Milford Judicial District. She also served as an assistant state’s attorney in the New Haven Geographical Area courthouse.
Judge Pierson has served on the Superior Court since 2017. He is currently assigned to the complex litigation docket in the Waterbury Judicial District. Prior to becoming a judge, from 2001 to 2017 he was a principal attorney at the law firm of Loughlin FitzGerald PC in Wallingford, focusing on civil litigation on behalf of plaintiffs and defendants, with a focus in complex tort litigation, personal injury, motor vehicle accidents, wrongful death, catastrophic injury, products liability and premises liability. Prior to that, he was as an associate attorney with the law firms of Wiggin and Dana, LLP and Brenner, Saltzman and Wallman, LLP.
“Judge Cradle has been an exemplary jurist of both the Superior Court and the Appellate Court, on which she is now serving as chief judge. With a vacancy opening on the Supreme Court, I immediately recognized that Judge Cradle is the ideal candidate to fill this position,” stated Governor Lamont. “Judge Cradle brings to our courts the high standards that the people of Connecticut deserve, and upon receiving the oath, she will become the first African American woman to ever serve on the Supreme Court—an historic and long-overdue step in the right direction. Additionally, Judge Pierson has an impressive career handling cases on the Superior Court and comes with the experience and skills necessary to contribute to the important mission of the Appellate Court.”
After Judge Cradle takes her seat on the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Mullins will be responsible for selecting one of the current judges from the Appellate Court to serve as that court’s chief judge. The Office of the Governor is forwarding notification of these nominations to the Connecticut General Assembly’s Judiciary Committee for its consideration.