Christine Siegrist Vertefeuille (born December 10, 1950) is a Senior Justice of the

Connecticut Supreme Court The Connecticut Supreme Court, formerly known as the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, is the supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It consists of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices. The seven justices sit i ...

Life

She is a

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

native, born in

New Britain, Connecticut New Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. The city is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol ...

. She graduated from

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

with a Bachelor of Arts in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

in 1972 and the

University of Connecticut School of Law The University of Connecticut School of Law (UConn Law) is the law school associated with the University of Connecticut and located in Hartford, Connecticut. It is the only public law school in Connecticut and one of only four in New England. As ...

with a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1975. Vertefeuille began her career as a judge with her 1989 appointment to the

Connecticut Superior Court The Connecticut Superior Court is the state trial court of general jurisdiction. It hears all matters other than those of original jurisdiction of the Probate Court, and hears appeals from the Probate Court. The Superior Court has 13 judicial dis ...

. During her tenure as a Superior Court Judge, she presided over the Connecticut silicone gel breast implant cases (1993–99). In addition, Vertefeuille served as the Administrative Judge in the Waterbury Judicial District (1994–99) and as a Complex Litigation Judge (1999). Vertefeuille was appointed a Judge of the

Connecticut Appellate Court The Connecticut Appellate Court is the court of first appeals for all cases arising from the Connecticut Superior Courts. Its creation in 1983 required Connecticut's voters and legislature to amend the state's constitution A constitution i ...

on September 13, 1999. On January 3, 2000, Vertefeuille was appointed a justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court, succeeding Justice Robert I. Berdon, who retired by law. She served as the Administrative Judge of the Appellate System from June 1, 2000, to July 31, 2006. In 2010, Vertefeuille announced her decision to retire and assume Senior Status. Governor M. Jodi Rell appointed Superior Court Judge Dennis Eveleigh to succeed her. On October 10, 2008, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled in ''

Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health ''Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health'', 289 Conn. 135, 957 A.2d 407, is a 2008 decision by the Connecticut Supreme Court holding that allowing same-sex couples to form same-sex unions but not marriages violates the Constitution of Connecti ...

'' that gay and lesbian couples could not be denied the right to marry because of the Equal Protection Clause of the state constitution. This decision made Connecticut the third state (along with

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

) to legalize same-sex marriage through judicial decree of the state supreme court. The majority opinion was written by Justice Richard N. Palmer, and joined by Justices Flemming L. Norcott Jr.,

Joette Katz Joette Katz (born February 3, 1953) is an American attorney who is a partner at the law firm, Shipman & Goodwin LL She was an associate justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court, where she also served as the administrative judge for the state a ...

, and Judge Lubbie Harper Jr. Justices Peter T. Zarella, Vertefeuille, and David Borden dissented.

References

External links

Biography at State of Connecticut Judicial Branch
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vertefeuille, Christine S. 1950 births Living people Justices of the Connecticut Supreme Court Women in Connecticut politics Politicians from New Britain, Connecticut Trinity College (Connecticut) alumni University of Connecticut School of Law alumni American women lawyers Superior court judges in the United States 20th-century Connecticut state court judges 21st-century American judges 20th-century American women judges 21st-century American women judges