CHARLESTON – Justice Evan Jenkins will take over as Chief Justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court on January 1.
Justice John Hutchison will be the court's Chief Justice in 2022, and he will serve as Acting Chief Justice in 2021 if Jenkins is unable to take part in a case before the court.
“I am truly humbled to be chosen Chief Justice by the other members of the court, and it will be my honor to lead the judicial branch in service to the citizens of West Virginia in the coming year,” Jenkins said. “I will continue Chief Justice Tim Armstead’s excellent work to ensure the courts of the state remain open and accessible during this unprecedented pandemic and Justice Walker’s leadership in 2019 to champion the reforms that were so desperately needed at our state’s highest court."
Hutchison
Jenkins said he also plans to expand efforts to make the judicial system more open and transparent.
“The Rule of Law upon which our country is founded depends on the public’s confidence in their government institutions," Jenkins said. "We have done much in the last two years to restore confidence in our Supreme Court, and we will continue to work hard every day to earn the public’s trust.”
Hutchison said he's excited for his opportunity as well.
“It has been a joy and the greatest honor of my life to serve on the Supreme Court," Hutchison said. "I have spent most of my adult life in public service and I look forward to serving the state in a new way, as Chief Justice, in 2022.”
Armstead said this year has been a challenging one to serve as Chief Justice.
“I appreciate very much my fellow justices’ friendship and cooperation and that of our dedicated court staff as well as judges throughout the state," Armstead said. "We have truly worked as a team. Our court system is made up of talented, resourceful and dedicated professionals who have proven they are up to the challenge.”
Jenkins was appointed to the court by Governor Jim Justice in 2018 and was elected later that year to fill the seat left by the retirement of Justice Robin Jean Davis. His term ends in 2024. When he was appointed, Justice Jenkins was a member of the United States House of Representatives, to which he was elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2016. He also previously served three terms in the West Virginia House of Delegates and West Virginia Senate. He also previously was executive director of the West Virginia State Medical Association, general counsel of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce and taught business law at Marshall University.
Jenkins was admitted to the practice of law in West Virginia in 1988 and began his legal career as an associate attorney with the Huntington law firm of Jenkins Fenstermaker. A native of Huntington, he has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Florida and a law degree from the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University.
Jenkins and his wife, Elizabeth, live in Huntington where they raised two sons and a daughter.
Hutchison was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2018 by Justice and was elected in June to a term ending in 2024. He previously was appointed as a Circuit Judge in Raleigh County by then-Governor Gaston Caperton in 1995, and he was elected to that seat in 1996 and re-elected in 2000, 2008 and 2016. As a circuit judge, Hutchison was a member of the Supreme Court’s Mass Litigation Panel and was a judicial representative on the Commission to Study Residential Placement of Children. He also served as treasurer, secretary, vice president and president of the West Virginia Judicial Association and was chairman and vice-chairman of the association’s legislative and pensions committees.
He was born and raised in Beckley. He has a 1972 bachelor’s degree in history and political science from Davis and Elkins College and a 1980 law degree from West Virginia University College of Law. He was assistant basketball coach at Davis and Elkins College (1972 to 1974) and was dorm director and assistant basketball coach at Concord University (1975 to 1977). After law school, he practiced law in Raleigh County for 10 years with Gorman, Sheatsley and Hutchison.
In 1991, he opened the Nationwide Insurance West Virginia Trial Division Office and served as its managing trial attorney for four years. From 1974 to 1975 he also taught and coached in Raleigh County Schools.
He is married to Victoria Lagowski Hutchison, and they have two children and two grandchildren.
