FRANKFORT, Ky., Dec. 5, 2019 – Justice Christopher Shea Nickell of Western Kentucky will be formally sworn in as a justice of the Supreme Court of Kentucky at an investiture ceremony Wednesday, Dec. 11, in Frankfort. The event will take place at 1:30 p.m. EST in the Supreme Court Courtroom on the second floor of the state Capitol at 700 Capital Ave. Chief Justice of Kentucky John D. Minton Jr. will administer the oath of office.
Justice Nickell was elected in the November general election to serve the 1st Supreme Court District, which is composed of the commonwealth’s 24 westernmost counties. He was officially sworn in Nov. 24 in Paducah by retired Justice Bill Cunningham. Justice Nickell was elected to fill the vacancy resulting from Justice Cunningham’s retirement in February. Justice David C. Buckingham was appointed to fill the vacancy until the election.
He has served the counties in the 1st District for the past 13 years as a Kentucky Court of Appeals judge for the 1st Appellate District, 1st Division. During his tenure he was chief judge pro temp, chairman of the court’s Personnel Committee and a member of the Judicial Compensation Commission.
Supreme Court of Kentucky
The Supreme Court is the state court of last resort and the final interpreter of Kentucky law. Seven justices sit on the Supreme Court and all seven justices rule on appeals that come before the court. The justices are elected from seven appellate districts and serve eight-year terms. A chief justice, chosen for a four-year term by fellow justices, is the administrative head of the state’s court system and is responsible for its operation. The Supreme Court may order a ruling or opinion to be published, which means that the ruling becomes the case law governing all similar cases in the future in Kentucky.