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    Wisconsin Lawyer
    October 01, 2004

    In the News: Butler Appointed to Supreme Court

    The Hon. Louis Butler, U.W. 1977, was sworn in as a Wisconsin Supreme Court justice on Aug. 25, at a ceremony in the state Assembly chambers in front of more than 200 spectators.

    Wisconsin Lawyer
    Vol. 77, No. 10, October 2004

    Butler Appointed to Supreme Court


    Michelle Behnke, Justice Louis Butler, and       Gov. Jim     Doyle
    State Bar President Michelle Behnke, Justice Louis Butler, and Gov. Jim Doyle at the swearing in.

    The Hon. Louis Butler, U.W. 1977, was sworn in as a Wisconsin Supreme Court justice on Aug. 25, at a ceremony in the state Assembly chambers in front of more than 200 spectators. Butler is the first African-American person to serve on Wisconsin's highest court. He was appointed by Gov. Jim Doyle to fill the vacancy left by the Hon. Diane Sykes, who is now a federal appellate court judge.

    Doyle said Butler brings a strong legal background and sense of fairness to the bench. In addition, he said, the court will welcome a different set of life experiences that comes with ethnic diversity.

    "Our justice system only works when it works for all of us, and to do that it must reflect the diversity and the boundless optimism of our people," Doyle said.

    Butler was a state public defender and then a Milwaukee municipal court judge before being elected to the Milwaukee County Circuit Court in 2002. His appointment to the supreme court lasts until 2008, when he will need to run for election to the court.


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