Voters have elected Kimberly A. Thomas to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court. Thomas, a clinical professor of law, is the director and co-founder of the Juvenile Justice Clinic at Michigan Law. She previously taught in the Civil-Criminal Litigation Clinic.

“I am so grateful to the people of Michigan for putting their trust in me,” Thomas said. “I am looking forward to serving on the Michigan Supreme Court. I have deeply enjoyed the past two decades teaching the next generation of lawyers, and will miss my colleagues and students here at Michigan Law.”

Thomas won an eight-year term on the court, replacing Justice David Viviano, who announced in March that he wouldn’t seek reelection.

Thomas specializes in trial and appellate practice, youth justice, and criminal sentencing law. In 2021, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed Thomas to the Michigan Task Force on Juvenile Justice Reform, where Thomas served through 2022. 

In 2013, Thomas was among several attorneys honored with the Justice for All award from the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan. They were recognized for their training and pro bono support following the 2012 US Supreme Court decision in Miller v. Alabama, which held that mandatory sentences of life without the possibility of parole are unconstitutional for juvenile offenders.

Thomas also has been engaged as a legal education expert for the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative in Jordan, Egypt, and Turkey. As part of this effort, in 2011, she spent three months in Amman, Jordan, working on law school curriculum development—especially in criminal law—and the creation and support of experiential education, including Jordan’s first legal clinics.

Before joining the Law School faculty in 2003, Thomas served as a trial attorney with Defender Association of Philadelphia.

“I am honored to congratulate Kim on her election to the Michigan Supreme Court,” said Dean Kyle D. Logue. “This remarkable achievement is a testament to her unwavering dedication, expertise, and commitment to justice. Kim’s contributions to our academic community and the legal field have been exemplary, and I have no doubt that she will bring the same excellence and integrity to the court.”