Monica Marie Márquez is a jurist

Jurist

A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...

 and judge

Judge

A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...

 from the state of Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

 who serves as an associate justice of the Colorado Supreme Court

Colorado Supreme Court

The Colorado Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Colorado. Located in Denver, the Court consists of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices.-Appellate jurisdiction:...

. Previously a Deputy Colorado Attorney General, governor Bill Ritter appointed her to the supreme court in 2010 to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Chief Justice Mary Mullarkey

Mary Mullarkey

-Biography:Mullarkey was born on September 28, 1943 to John and Isabelle Mullarkey in New London, Wisconsin. She would attend St. Norbert College and Harvard Law School. On July 24, 1971 she married Thomas E. Korson.-Career:...

. She was sworn in on December 10, 2010.

Biography

A native of Austin, Texas

Austin, Texas

Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...

, Márquez grew up in Grand Junction, Colorado

Grand Junction, Colorado

The City of Grand Junction is the largest city in western Colorado. It is a city with a council–manager government form that is the county seat and the most populous city of Mesa County, Colorado, United States. Grand Junction is situated west-southwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. As...

 and graduated as valedictorian

Valedictorian

Valedictorian is an academic title conferred upon the student who delivers the closing or farewell statement at a graduation ceremony. Usually, the valedictorian is the highest ranked student among those graduating from an educational institution...

 from Grand Junction High School

Grand Junction High School

Grand Junction High School is a high school located in Grand Junction, Colorado. It is part of the Mesa County Valley School District 51.As of 2006, the student-teacher ratio is about 19:1 -Athletics:...

 in 1987. She earned a bachelor's degree from Stanford University

Stanford University

The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...

 in 1991 before spending two years with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps

Jesuit Volunteer Corps

The Jesuit Volunteer Corps is an organization of lay volunteers who dedicate one year or more to voluntary community service working with people in need--the homeless, abused women and children, immigrants and refugees, the mentally ill, people with HIV/AIDS and other illnesses, the elderly,...

, working with at-risk children in Camden, New Jersey

Camden, New Jersey

The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...

 and Philadelphia. She then attended Yale Law School

Yale Law School

Yale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...

, earning a J.D.

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 in 1997 and serving as an editor of the Yale Law Journal

Yale Law Journal

The Yale Law Journal is a student-run law review affiliated with the Yale Law School. Published continuously since 1891, it is the most widely known of the eight law reviews published by students at Yale Law School...

. She went on to clerk for two federal judges: Michael Ponsor

Michael Ponsor

Michael Adrian Ponsor is a senior judge on the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. He serves in the court's western region, in the city of Springfield....

 of the District of Massachusetts

United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts

The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, USA. The first court session was held in Boston in 1789. The second term was held in Salem in 1790 and until 1813 court session locations...

 and David M. Ebel

David M. Ebel

David M. Ebel is a federal appellate judge who has served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit since 1988.-Education and Legal Training:...

 of the Tenth Circuit

United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Colorado* District of Kansas...

. She then worked as an associate at Holme Roberts & Owen before joining the Colorado Attorney General's office in 2002.

Márquez is a past president of the Colorado GLBT Bar Association and a board member of the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association. She also served as chairwoman of the Denver Mayor’s GLBT Commission. Her father, Jose D.L. Márquez, was the first Latino judge of the Colorado Court of Appeals

Colorado Court of Appeals

The Colorado Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the state of Colorado. It was established by statute by the Colorado General Assembly under Article VI, Section 1 of the Constitution of Colorado.-Jurisdiction:...

.

Judicial appointment

On August 24, 2010, the Colorado Supreme Court Nominating Commission

Judicial nominating commission

A judicial nominating commission in the United States, is a body used by some U.S. states to recommend or select potential justices and judges for appointments by state governments....

 selected Márquez as one of three candidates to replace Mary Mullarkey

Mary Mullarkey

-Biography:Mullarkey was born on September 28, 1943 to John and Isabelle Mullarkey in New London, Wisconsin. She would attend St. Norbert College and Harvard Law School. On July 24, 1971 she married Thomas E. Korson.-Career:...

 on the Colorado Supreme Court

Colorado Supreme Court

The Colorado Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Colorado. Located in Denver, the Court consists of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices.-Appellate jurisdiction:...

. On September 8, 2010, Democratic

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 Governor

Governor of Colorado

The Governor of Colorado is the head of the executive branch of Colorado's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Colorado General Assembly, to convene the...

 Bill Ritter announced Márquez as his choice to replace Mullarkey. The appointment won praise from her former boss, Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Colorado Attorney General

Colorado Attorney General

The Attorney General of the State of Colorado is the chief legal officer for the state of Colorado, and the head of the Colorado Department of Law...

 John Suthers

John Suthers

John William Suthers is the current Attorney General of Colorado. He is a practicing Catholic and member of the Republican Party.-Background:Suthers was born in Denver, Colorado and adopted a month later by a Colorado Springs couple....

.

Márquez is the first Latina and first openly gay person to serve on the Colorado Supreme Court. Her long-term partner is Sheila Barthel. She is one of six openly LGBT judges serving on state supreme court

State supreme court

In the United States, the state supreme court is the highest state court in the state court system ....

s, alongside justice Sabrina McKenna

Sabrina McKenna

Sabrina Shizue McKenna is a judge from the U.S. state of Hawaii. Since February 16, 2011, she has served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Hawaii.-Early life and education:...

 of the Hawaii Supreme Court, justice Barbara Lenk

Barbara Lenk

Barbara A. Lenk is an Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. On April 4, 2011, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick nominated her to to that position and she was confirmed by the Governor's Council on May 4, 2011. She took the oath of office on June 8.-Early life and...

 of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The SJC has the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Western Hemisphere.-History:...

, justice Beth Robinson

Beth Robinson

Beth Robinson is an American lawyer from Vermont who was appointed in October 2011 to the Vermont Supreme Court. Her nomination, made by Governor Peter Shumlin, requires confirmation from the Vermont Senate although, according to the Burlington Free Press, this is "seen as assured"...

 of the Vermont Supreme Court

Vermont Supreme Court

The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont and is one of seven state courts of Vermont.The Court consists of a chief justice and four associate justices; the Court mostly hears appeals of cases that have been decided by other courts...

, and justices Rives Kistler

Rives Kistler

Rives Kistler is an American attorney and judge in the state of Oregon. After college and law school on the East Coast, he moved to Oregon where he worked in private practice before joining the Oregon Department of Justice...

 and Virginia Linder

Virginia Linder

Virginia Lynn Linder is an American judge from Oregon who has served, since January 2007, as the 99th justice of the Oregon Supreme Court. She had previously served since 1997 on the Oregon Court of Appeals...

, both members of the Oregon Supreme Court

Oregon Supreme Court

The Oregon Supreme Court is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States. The OSC holds court at the Oregon Supreme Court Building in Salem, Oregon, near the capitol...

.