Monica Márquez

Monica Marie Márquez (born April 20, 1969) is an associate justice of the Colorado Supreme Court. Previously a Deputy Colorado Attorney General, she was appointed by Governor Bill Ritter to the Supreme Court in 2010 to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Chief Justice Mary Mullarkey.[1] She was sworn in on December 10, 2010.[2]

Monica Márquez
96th Associate Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court
Incumbent
Assumed office December 10, 2010
Appointed by	Bill Ritter
Preceded by	Mary Mullarkey
Personal details
Born	April 20, 1969 Austin, Texas, U.S.
Domestic partner	Sheila Barthel
Alma mater	Stanford University Yale University

Biography

A native of Austin, Texas, Márquez grew up in Grand Junction, Colorado and graduated as valedictorian from Grand Junction High School in 1987.[3][4] She earned a bachelor's degree from Stanford University in 1991 before spending two years with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, working with at-risk children in Camden, New Jersey, and Philadelphia.[5] She then attended Yale Law School, earning a Juris Doctor in 1997 and serving as an editor of the Yale Law Journal.[1] She went on to clerk for two federal judges: Michael Ponsor of the District of Massachusetts and David M. Ebel of the Tenth Circuit.[6] She then worked as an associate at Holme Roberts & Owen before joining the Colorado Attorney General's office in 2002.[6]

Márquez is a past president of the Colorado LGBT Bar Association and a board member of the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association.[7] She also served as chairwoman of the Denver Mayor’s GLBT Commission.[7] Her father, Jose D.L. Márquez, was the first Latino judge of the Colorado Court of Appeals.[6]

Judicial appointment

On August 24, 2010, the Colorado Supreme Court Nominating Commission selected Márquez as one of three candidates to replace Mary Mullarkey on the Colorado Supreme Court.[8] On September 8, 2010, Democratic Governor Bill Ritter announced Márquez as his choice to replace Mullarkey.[5] The appointment won praise from her former boss, Republican Colorado Attorney General John Suthers.[5]

Márquez is the first Latina and first openly gay person to serve on the Colorado Supreme Court.[1] Her long-term partner is Sheila Barthel.[2] She is the longest-serving of twelve openly LGBT state supreme court justices currently serving in the United States.

References

1. "Ritter appoints Marquez to Colo. Supreme Court". KDVR. September 8, 2010. Archived from the original on July 17, 2011.
2. Cardona, Felisa (December 11, 2010). "Newest Colorado Supreme Court justice's milestone a family affair". The Denver Post.
3. "Justice Monica M. Márquez". Colorado Supreme Court.
4. "Justice Márquez". The Daily Sentinel. September 9, 2010.
5. Cardona, Felisa (September 9, 2010). "Ritter picks Monica Marquez for Colorado Supreme Court". The Denver Post.
6. "Sources: Monica Marquez Is Next Supreme Court Justice". Law Week Colorado. September 8, 2010. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
7. "Attorney General lauds Deputy Attorney General Monica Marquez as recipient of 2009 Richard Marden Davis Award". Office of the Colorado Attorney General. January 14, 2010. Archived from the original on September 11, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
8. "3 finalists named for Colorado Supreme Court vacancy". Denver Business Journal. August 25, 2010.