WISCONSIN — The first woman to ever serve on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the first woman to serve as chief justice has died.
Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson served more than 40 years on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and wrote more than 1,300 opinions.
She was a meticulous jurist and a profound writer who believed in an independent judiciary, Governor Evers wrote in a statement Sunday.
"Her legacy is defined not just by being a first, but her life’s work of ensuring she would not be the last, paving and lighting the way for the many women and others who would come after her," Evers wrote. "She was a pillar of our state and the court for generations. We have missed her greatly on the court, and we will miss her greatly in this life."
Abrahamson was 87 when she died on Saturday and had recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
