Chief Justice Margaret Marshall Awarded the 2021 Bolch Prize for the Rule of Law

Choate senior counsel Chief Justice Margaret Marshall is the 2021 recipient of the Bolch Judicial Institute of Duke Law School Prize for the Rule of Law. The Bolch Prize is awarded annually to an individual or organization who has demonstrated extraordinary dedication to the rule of law around the world.

Before retiring as Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in 2010, Chief Justice Marshall wrote hundreds of opinions, including the groundbreaking 2003 decision in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, which held that the Massachusetts Constitution prohibits the state from denying same-sex couples access to civil marriage. The opinion made Massachusetts the first state to legalize gay marriage and laid the groundwork for a sea change in attitudes and law across the United States.

The Bolch Judicial Institute Advisory Board selects the annual award recipient, and awardees receive the prize during an annual ceremony in June. The first prize was awarded to Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy in April 2019.

To read the full announcement, click here.