Elizabeth Merrill Welch (born September 20, 1970) is an American lawyer from

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

who has served as an

associate justice An associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some ...

of the

Michigan Supreme Court The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the s ...

since 2021.

Education

Welch received her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

and her

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 ...

from the

Ohio State University Moritz College of Law The Michael E. Moritz College of Law is the Law school in the United States, law school of Ohio State University, a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1891, the school is ...

Career

Welch has been practicing law in Michigan and Ohio since 1995, she later opened up her own practice in

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

in 2004.

Michigan Supreme Court

Welch was nominated as a candidate for the Michigan Supreme Court by the

Michigan Democratic Party The Michigan Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Michigan. It is based in Lansing. Curtis Hertel Jr. is the party's current chair. Structure Residents of the state of Michigan at least 16 years of age are ...

. Welch ran for the seat being vacated by Justice

Stephen Markman Stephen J. Markman (born June 4, 1949) is a former justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. He was appointed by Republican governor John Engler on October 1, 1999, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Justice James H. Brickley. Educat ...

whose term was expiring. On November 3, 2020, Welch went on to win the general election, giving the Michigan Supreme Court a Democratic majority.

Personal life

Welch lives in

East Grand Rapids East Grand Rapids is a city in Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the United States, U.S. state of Michigan. , the population was 11,371. The city is part of the Grand Rapids metropolitan area, including Grand Rapids, Michigan, Grand Rapids ...

with her husband, Brian; they have 4 children.

References

External links

* 1970 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges 21st-century American lawyers 20th-century American women lawyers Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court Michigan Democrats Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni Lawyers from Grand Rapids, Michigan 21st-century American women judges People from East Grand Rapids, Michigan {{US-law-bio-stub