BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey personally appealed to the Governor’s Council on Wednesday to approve her controversial nomination of Appeals Court Judge Gabrielle Wolohojian to fill a vacancy on the state’s highest court.
Speaking during a confirmation hearing, Healey personally made the case for confirming Wolohojian, calling her “a remarkable jurist, uniquely talented, thoroughly prepared, generously willing to serve, and deeply committed to our judicial institutions.”
“Time and again, Judge Wolohojian has proven herself to be a person of wisdom and integrity, deeply committed to both the rule of law and the strengthening of our community,” Healey told members of the council.
Healey made few references to her personal relationship with Wolohojian, with whom she lived with in Charlestown when she was the state’s Attorney General.
“As I have said in the past, a personal relationship – and my personal relationship – with Judge Wolohojian should not deprive the people of Massachusetts of an outstanding SJC justice,” Healey told the panel.
Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, who co-chaired the Governor’s Council hearing, praised Wolohojian as “one of our state’s most experienced appellate judges,” noting her 16-year tenure on the Appeals Court.
Supporters of Wolohojian, who included lawyers, judges, court staff and former colleagues, packed into the Gardner Auditorium at the Statehouse and lauded her experience and temperament as an attorney and appellate judge.
Several individuals spoke in opposition to Wolohojian’s nomination, most citing her reviews of cases involving home foreclosures. None of those who spoke in opposition mentioned Healey’s previous relationship with the nominee.
Councilor Marilyn Devaney asked Wolohojian if there were any instances where she would need to recuse herself from a case before the Supreme Court, without alluding to her previous relationship with the governor. Wolohojian replied that she decides recusals on a case-by-case basis.
“Recusal is something that I take very seriously,” Wolohojian told the panel. “I have absolutely no interest and never have in sitting on cases I shouldn’t sit on, or not sitting in cases I should sit on.”
Councilor Christopher Iannella noted that of the nearly 900 opinions Wolohojian has written for the Appeals Court only a “handful” had been overturned.
“You are the real deal,” he said. “You have the right temperament. A lot of people come before this council and you seem like a nice person. That coupled with your legal career, I can tell you that when your name comes before the council in the next week or so I’ll be more than happy to support you.”
But Councilor Tara Jacobs said she has heard from judges, lawyers and constituents who are “concerned” about the “elephant in the room” that she was nominated by her former romantic partner. Jacobs said she has struggled with the “perception of impropriety” about her nomination to the bench.
“The optics matter to me,” she said. “The perception of our courts having integrity. Was there equal opportunity across the board for those who weren’t what could be called a ‘deep insider’ to get the nomination? It’s troubling to me.”
Jacobs said she is concerned about the possibility that “injustice” could occur if Wolohojian recuses herself from a case that results in a tie among justices.
Earlier in the hearing, Jacobs had asked fellow councilors if she could question the governor about the issue, but was told that she couldn’t.
Wolohojian was appointed to the Appeals Court in 2008 and has overseen 2,700 appeals and authored more than 900 decisions, she told the panel. She also serves as the chair of the SJC’s Advisory Committee on the Rules of Appellate Procedure.
Previously, she served as a law clerk to Judge Rya Zobel of the U.S. District Court in Boston and later to Judge Bailey Aldrich of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
Wolohojian worked private practice in the 1990s at the Boston law firm of Hale and Dorr, which is now known as WilmerHale. She became a partner in the firm’s litigation department working on state and federal court cases, according to the Healey administration.
The grandchild of Armenian immigrants, Wolohojian has also been involved in efforts to recognize the victims of the Armenian genocide.
If confirmed, she would fill a vacancy left by Justice David Lowy who retired Feb. 3 after a 26-year run as a judge, including seven years on the SJC.
Healey’s nomination of Wolohojian is her second pick for the Supreme Judicial Court, as the first-term governor begins to leave her mark on the court. She previously nominated former State Solicitor Elizabeth “Bessie” Dewar to the SJC, which was unanimously approved last month by the Governor’s Council.
Massachusetts’ highest court is known nationally for its historic rulings on same-sex marriage, criminal justice reforms, racial injustice and other legal issues.
Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court, where justices are appointed to the bench for life, the state constitution requires Massachusetts justices to retire at age 70.
Following Wednesday’s hearing, the state Republican Party issued a statement reiterating criticism of Wolohojian’s nomination and blasting the “rubber stamp” judicial committee that vetted her for the vacancy on the Supreme Court.
“It’s difficult to conceive that the personal relationship didn’t impact the nomination process,” MassGOP Chairwoman Amy Carnevale said. “In submitting a nomination to the highest court, a governor must avoid even the semblance of a conflict of interest, and this nomination fails to pass that critical test.”
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@cnhinews.com