November 16, 2009
Georgia's tradition of honoring its past Supreme Court Justices with their portraits exhibited at the Supreme Court continues with the unveiling of Retired Chief Justice and current Schiff Hardin partner Leah Ward Sears' portrait at 2:00 PM on Wednesday, December 2, 2009 at the Georgia State Supreme Court Courtroom in the Judicial Center, 40 Capitol Square, in Atlanta. This is the first portrait of either a person of color or a woman to hang among the portraits of the former chief justices of the Georgia Supreme Court. The portrait artist is the nationally renown Jamie Lee McMahan (http://www.jamiemcmahan.com/), and it was commissioned by a number of Georgia Lawyers. The event is open to the public - RSVP to rsvp@gasupreme.us by November 25, 2009.
Retired Chief Justice Sears said, "I am truly gratified. It is a singular honor to have my likeness displayed with the distinguished jurors who have served as Georgia Supreme Court justices. I hope this can be an inspiration to other current and future members of the bar to strive for the highest legal ideals and the continuing excellence of our justice system."
Leah Ward Sears joined Schiff Hardin in 2009 after distinguished service as Chief Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court. She concentrates her practice in general and appellate litigation, with a particular focus on "high stakes" cases, where an appeal is likely. She also advises clients facing governmental inquiries. As both a former practicing attorney and judge, Justice Sears is particularly adept at developing and advising clients on litigation strategy.
When appointed in 1992, Justice Sears became the first woman and the youngest person ever to become a Georgia Supreme Court justice. Born June 13, 1955 in Heidelberg, Germany, she grew up traveling the globe with her family. The Sears family eventually settled in Savannah, Georgia, where she attended elementary and high school. In 1976, Justice Sears earned her B.S. degree at Cornell University and moved to Atlanta, where she earned her J.D. from Emory University School of Law in 1980.
After earning her law degree, Justice Sears decided to stay in Atlanta. There, she made a name for herself working as a trial lawyer for the law firm Alston and Bird. In 1982 Mayor Andrew Young appointed her as a part-time judge in Atlanta's City Traffic Court. In 1985 she left Alston and Bird for a full-time position with the Traffic Court. After serving three years in this position, Justice Sears was elected to the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia. She became the first African-American woman to hold such a position in the state of Georgia. In February of 1992, Governor Zell Miller appointed Justice Sears to Georgia's Supreme Court. Justice Sears retained her seat on the state's Supreme Court by winning a statewide election in the fall of 1992. This made her the first woman to win a contested statewide election in Georgia. She then continued her education and earned a LL.M. degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1995. When she was sworn in as Chief Justice of Georgia's Supreme Court on June 28, 2005, she became the court's first woman Chief Justice.
Justice Sears has several civic and professional affiliations. She served as chairman of the American Bar Association's Board of Elections, the Judicial Section of the Atlanta Bar Association, and the Atlanta Bar's Minority Clerkship Program. She founded and served as the first president of the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys. Justice Sears is a member of the Atlanta Chapter of Links, Inc., and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Georgia Trend magazine has honored Justice Sears as one of the "100 Most Influential Georgians," and in 1993 Business Atlanta magazine named her as one of the "Under Forty and on the Fast Track." In 2001, she was the recipient of the Emory Medal from Emory University for being an "Outstanding Young Alumna." The Judge is married to Haskell Sears Ward, and she has two children, Addison, 26 years old, and Brennan, 22.
During her tenure on the Georgia Supreme Court, she spearheaded two major initiatives: the Georgia Supreme Court's Commission on Children, Marriage, and Family Law and the Committee on Civil Justice. The Commission on Children, Marriage, and Family Law was established to address the legal and administrative issues stemming from the increasing fragmentation of Georgia's families, while the Committee on Civil Justice was established to develop, coordinate, and support policy initiatives to expand access to the courts for poor and vulnerable Georgians.
In addition to practicing law at Schiff Hardin, Justice Sears currently is devoting half her time to two other ventures. She is serving the Institute for American Values for one year as the William Thomas Sears Distinguished Fellow in Family Law. The fellowship is named after her beloved brother Tommy, who died in November 2007 at the age of 53. The Institute for American Values is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research institution based in New York City. Its goals are to produce cutting-edge scholarship in the area of marriage and family, influence how Americans think about financial thrift and generosity, and increase Americans' engagement in Islam-West relations. Justice Sears is also teaching a seminar on "Contemporary Issues in Family Law" at the University of Georgia Law School. The seminar explores today's definition of "family" and the dramatic changes in marriage and divorce, as well as focus on controversial family issues facing the legal system.