February 29, 2024
March 1 marks the beginning of National Women’s History Month and NCSC’s annual review of the latest gender-based statistics in state courts. Established in 1995, the month is defined by an annual presidential proclamation that celebrates the contributions that women have made to the United States. This year’s theme is “Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.” Data collected in late January 2024 from state court websites show slight increases in the number of female-identifying judges sitting on courts of last resort (COLR): 40.7% of judges used she/her pronouns in 2024 compared to 40.2% in 2023. This year, 21 states have female chief justices; in 2023, 20 did. The number of states with over 40% female justices increased from 34 in 2023 to 35 in 2024, and those with over 50% increased from 13 in 2023 to 15 in 2024.
While the number of female judges has stayed relatively stagnant over the past year, progress is clear when this year’s numbers are compared in tandem with data from just five years ago.
Female-Identifying Chief Justices | Female-Identifying Sitting Justices | Courts with >40% Female Justices | Courts with >50% Female Justices | |
2019 | 16 | 35.4% | 24 | 11 |
2024 | 21 | 40.7% | 35 | 15 |
Wisconsin continues to hold the highest percentage of female justices in a state court of last resort (89%), while Washington, Nevada, and Illinois follow close behind (78%, 71%, and 71%, respectively). The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals, the South Carolina Supreme Court, and the Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court are the only three without any female justices sitting on the bench.
As of late January, three new women have been sworn into their positions: Elizabeth N. Dewar in Massachusetts, Melissa Countway in New Hampshire, and Lisa M. Ginoza in Hawaii. These numbers are subject to change throughout the year. In 2024 at least 73 state supreme court seats are up for reelection across 32 states.
In their 2020 report, the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators (CCJ/COSCA) highlight the importance of “improving racial and ethnic diversity of the bench, law clerks, and court staff, and collecting, maintaining, and reporting court data on diversity” (NCSC). For additional information about the diversity of the high court benches, NCSC provides some insights as part of the State Court Organization project. Moreover, the Brennan Center for Justice’s May 2023 report provides further insights on racial and ethnic diversity within state COLR.
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