Louisiana Supreme Court Chief Justice John L. Weimer Named Board Member of National Conference of Chief Justices

Louisiana Supreme Court Chief Justice John L. Weimer was named as a Board Member of the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) at its Annual Meeting earlier this year. Chief Justice Weimer’s term as a Board Member expires in 2025.

“I am humbled and grateful and very much appreciate being named by my colleagues to serve in a leadership role for the national Conference of Chief Justices,” said Chief Justice Weimer. “The benefits to Louisiana’s judiciary are immense. The Board develops policy and has access to cutting edge information related to the judiciary. I am pleased to report that in many instances, Louisiana is leading the way in providing services to the public. In particular, the Judges in the Classroom/Students in the Courtroom program is both envied and being replicated in other states. Additionally, there will be an economic benefit to the state, as the midyear meeting will be held in New Orleans in 2025.”

The Conference of Chief Justices was founded in 1949 to provide an opportunity for the highest judicial officers of the states to meet and discuss matters of importance in improving the administration of justice, rules and methods of procedure, and the organization and operation of state courts and judicial systems, and to make recommendations and bring about improvements on such matters.

Membership in the Conference of Chief Justices consists of the highest judicial officer of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam and the Virgin Islands. The Conference of Chief Justices is governed by a Board of Directors and has several standing, temporary and special committees to assist the Conference in meeting its objectives.

Chief Justice John L. Weimer became the 26th Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court on January 1, 2021. He began his service on the Supreme Court in 2001 when he was elected to serve as an Associate Justice, District 6, comprised of the parishes of: Assumption, Iberia, Lafourche, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Martin, St. Mary, Terrebonne and a portion of the west bank of Jefferson, which includes Grand Isle. In 2002, 2012 and again in 2022, Justice Weimer was re- elected to a 10-year term without opposition.

Prior to taking the bench, Chief Justice Weimer was a full-time faculty member at Nicholls State University where he taught law and ethics classes for 16 years. He received the Presidential Award for Teaching Excellence and was also named to Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. He also served as director of the Free Enterprise Week Program at Nicholls.

Upon becoming Chief Justice, he immediately set out to reinvigorate the Judges in the Classroom/Students in the Courtroom program, which has been embraced by judges, teachers and schools, and a number of other interested partners to educate students and teachers alike in civics, personal responsibility and respect for the law, themselves and fellow citizens while addressing the consequences of inappropriate behavior.

Chief Justice Weimer was honored with the Outstanding Judicial Award from Victims and Citizens Against Crime and with the Outstanding Jurist Award from Crimefighters, Inc. – both statewide organizations dedicated to victims of crime. Additionally, Justice Weimer was honored by Common Sense Against Crime and Crimefighters with an Award of Merit. In 2006, Justice Weimer was named as one of the leading judges in America by a national publication, The Law Dragon. He was also recognized for his significant assistance in establishing the Lafourche Parish Drug Treatment Court.

He formerly served on the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Center for Law and Civic Education. He frequently teaches at schools throughout the district he serves and re- established and coordinates the Lafourche Parish Student Government Day Program.

Chief Justice Weimer was born and raised in Lafourche Parish, graduated from Thibodaux High School and was an academic honors and Hall of Fame graduate of Nicholls State University, where he twice served as student body President. He received his Juris Doctorate from LSU. Chief Justice Weimer is married to Penny Hymel, a former elementary school teacher, who was born and raised in the River Parishes. They are the parents of three daughters: Jacqueline, Katherine and Emily.