Deborah T. Poritz
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Deborah Tobias Poritz (October 26, 1936 in Brooklyn, New York) was the Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1996 to 2006, and was the Attorney General of New Jersey from 1994 – 1996, in both cases becoming the first woman to serve in that position.
Justice Poritz graduated from James Madison High School in 1954 and Brooklyn College in 1958. She became a Woodrow Wilson Fellow in English and American Literature at Columbia University.
After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1977, Poritz became a Deputy Attorney General in the New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety. In 1981, she was named as the Assistant Chief of the Environmental Protection Section. She later served as Deputy Attorney General in Charge of Appeals, Chief of the Banking, Insurance and Public Securities Section, and later as Director of the Division of Law, and finally she was named the Chief Counsel to Governor of New Jersey Thomas Kean. From 1990 to 1994, Poritz was a partner in the Princeton law firm of Jamieson, Moore, Peskin & Spicer.
Poritz was the first woman to serve as Attorney General of New Jersey. She was nominated to the position by Governor of New Jersey Christine Todd Whitman in January 1994. As Attorney General, she oversaw the divisions of Law, Criminal Justice, Gaming Enforcement, Motor Vehicles, Consumer Affairs, Civil Rights and the New Jersey State Police. She served as attorney general until she took office as chief justice.
Poritz was nominated to be Chief Justice by Governor Whitman on June 20, 1996, and was confirmed on June 27, 1996. She was officially sworn in as the first female Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court on July 10, 1996. Chief Justice Poritz served until October 25, 2006, when she retired, one day prior to her seventieth birthday.
Chief Justice Poritz and her husband Alan have two sons, Mark and Jonathan Poritz.
| Preceded by Robert Del Tufo |
Attorney General of New Jersey 1994 – 1996 |
Succeeded by Peter Verniero |
| Preceded by Robert N. Wilentz |
Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court 1996 – 2006 |
Succeeded by James R. Zazzali |
[edit] External links
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Poritz, Deborah T. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Chief justice of New Jersey Supreme Court |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 26, 1936 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Brooklyn, New York |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
| Attorneys General of New Jersey (Since 1947 State Constitution) |  |
|---|---|
| Parsons • Richman • Furman • Sills • Kugler • Hyland • Degnan • Zazzali • Kimmelman • Edwards • Perretti • Del Tufo • Poritz • Verniero • Farmer • Samson • Harvey • Farber • Rabner |
