Maine chief justice nominee would be second woman in role

Courtesy / Office of Gov. Janet Mills Maine Superior Court Judge Valerie Stanfill has been nominated to serve as chief justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.

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By Staff

Gov. Janet Mills on Monday nominated Maine Superior Court Judge Valerie Stanfill as chief justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.

If confirmed, she would be the second woman to serve in that role, along with the most recent chief justice, Leigh Saufley. The current vacancy was created when Saufley left the bench last year to become dean of the University of Maine School of Law.

“Justice Stanfill’s sharp intellect, vast legal experience and expertise, and commitment to administering justice fairly and impartially make her an exceptional candidate to serve as Maine’s Chief Justice,” said Mills. “I firmly believe that the Court will benefit considerably from her skills and that our state will be well-served with her at the helm of Maine’s Judicial Branch.”

Stanfill said, “It is the honor of a lifetime to receive this nomination, and, if I am fortunate enough to earn the trust of the Legislature and be confirmed, to serve the people of Maine in this important role.

“I pledge to the people of Maine that I will serve them honorably and faithfully, that I will uphold the rule of law, and that I will work every day to deliver fair and impartial justice."

Since February 2020, Stanfill has served on the Maine Superior Court presiding over Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin counties, a position to which Mills also nominated her. Before that, she served on the Maine District Court from January 2007 to February 2020.

Previous experience includes working as acting director of the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic and as a visiting professor at Maine Law. She also spent much of her career in private practice.

She has served as chair of the Judicial Branch Advisory Committee on Domestic Violence and Protection Orders and as a member of the Maine Commission on Domestic and Sexual Abuse, the Judicial Branch Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics, and the Maine Domestic Homicide Review Panel. She has also served as a volunteer mock trial coach for Lewiston High School.

Stanfill, 63, graduated magna cum laude from Maine Law and received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania. She lives in Wayne.

The nomination is subject to confirmation by the Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on the Judiciary and the Maine State Senate. Justice Andrew M. Mead has served as acting chief justice since Saufley stepped down.

Stanfill is Mills’ third nomination to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court since taking office.

Associate Justices Catherine Connors and Andrew Horton were nominated by the governor in 2020 and confirmed unanimously by state lawmakers.