Justice Clifford W. Taylor

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#0000BF" TEXT="#F7F7FF" bgproperties="fixed" background="044005a0exvipq.gif"> <div> <FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#FFCC33" FACE="Copperplate Gothic Bold" ><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Eastside Republican Club"><U><B>Home</B></U></A><B>  </B><B> </B></FONT><B>  | </B><B> </B><B> </B><B>  </B><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Copperplate Gothic Bold" ><B>Eastside Republican Club</B></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="erc_meeting_dates.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Events"><U><B>Events</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="eastside_republican_review_summary.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="ERC Review"><U><B>ERC Review</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="michigan_s_13th_district.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Congressional District News"><U><B>Congressional District News</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="civic___governmental_links.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Links</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="erc_officers.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>About Us</B></U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Justice Clifford W. Taylor</B></div> <div> <A HREF="link_to_michigan_gop.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Michigan Republicans"><U><B><IMG SRC="05358580.gif" border=0 width="88" height="88" ALT="Michigan GOP" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="michigan_s_13th_district.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Congressional District News"><U><I><B>Congressional District News</B></I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="erc_testimonials.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="What Theyre Saying About Us"><U><I><B>Read what they've said about us</B></I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="erc_meeting_dates.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Events"><U><B><IMG SRC="81b871f0.gif" border=0 width="135" height="31" ALT=">>Events" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div>  <A NAME="top_of_page"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></div> <div> <I><U>Chief Justice of Michigan Supreme Court</U></I></div> <div> <B>Michigan Justice Clifford W. Taylor</B></div> <div> <B>To Present Judicial Philosophy at June ERC Forum</B></div> <div> Clifford W. Taylor, Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court, will address the ERC Forum at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 17, 2008.</div> <div> “Justice Taylor is very personable, witty, and will be a hit at the meeting,” said Dr. Julie Corbett, Eastside Republican Club chairman.<IMG SRC="16b399d80.jpg" border=0 width="153" height="216" ALT="Chief Justice Clifford W. Taylor " ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="8" VSPACE="5"></div> <div> Taylor, a resident of suburban Lansing, will discuss the Court's responsibilities under the Michigan Constitution, and its role in applying and interpreting the law. He will also answer audience questions.</div> <div> “We invite anyone interested in government to attend this forum,” said Corbett. The ERC's June forum will be held at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial in Grosse Pointe Farms.</div> <div> The Eastside Republican Club Forum is normally held on the third Tuesday of the month from September through June. Admission is free and the public is always welcome.</div> <div> <I><B>Selection as Chief Justice</B></I></div> <div> In January 2005, his Michigan Supreme Court colleagues selected Justice Taylor as the Court's Chief Justice. At that time six of the seven Justices voted to elect Taylor.</div> <div> Every two years, the Justices elect one of their colleagues to serve in that capacity for a two-year term. According to the Court's custom, a Chief Justice generally serves no more than two consecutive two-year terms.</div> <div> <I><B>Education and Professional Background</B></I></div> <div> Chief Justice Clifford W. Taylor, a native of Flint, was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court in August 1997 by Gov. John Engler to fill the seat vacated by retiring Justice Dorothy Comstock Riley. In 1998, Justice Taylor ran and was elected to fill the balance of Justice Riley's term. Justice Taylor was re-elected to a full eight-year term in 2000.</div> <div> Chief Justice Taylor received his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan, and his law degree from George Washington University.</div> <div> After three years in the U.S. Navy as a line officer, he returned to Michigan and served as an assistant prosecuting attorney in Ingham County. In 1972, he joined the Lansing law firm of Denfield, Timmer and Seelye, which later became Denfield, Timmer & Taylor when he became a partner in the firm. He remained in private practice for 20 years, receiving the highest ratings for competence and character by lawyer rating organizations.</div> <div> In 1992, Governor Engler appointed him to the Michigan Court of Appeals where he served until his appointment to the Michigan Supreme Court.</div> <div> Chief Justice Taylor's professional activities include service on the board of directors of the National Conference of Chief Justices, and on the board of the George Mason University Law & Economics Center, which provides judicial education across the country.</div> <div> He has served on the Michigan Legislature's Commission on the Courts in the 21st Century, and on the Michigan State Board of Law Examiners.</div> <div> He is co-author of a three-volume work entitled <I>Torts</I> that covers personal injury law in Michigan.</div> <div> His community activities include having served on the board of directors of Chief Okemos Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and the board of directors for the Michigan Dyslexia Institute.</div> <div> Taylor resides in Laingsburg with his wife, Lucille.</div> <div> <I><B>About Michigan's Supreme Court</B></I></div> <div> The Supreme Court is Michigan's court of last resort, consisting of seven justices. Supreme Court justices are elected for eight-year terms. Candidates are nominated by political parties and are elected on a nonpartisan ballot. Two justices are elected every two years (one in the eighth year) in the November election.<IMG SRC="16b4b0210.jpg" border=0 width="432" height="289" ALT="Michigan Supreme Court" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="5" VSPACE="3"></div> <div> Supreme Court candidates must be qualified electors, licensed to practice law in Michigan for at least five years, and at the time of election must be less than 70 years of age. Vacancies are filled by appointment of the Governor until the next general election.</div> <div> Cases come before the Court during a term that starts August 1 and runs through July 31 of the following year. The Court hears oral arguments in Lansing beginning in October of each term. Decisions are released throughout the term, following oral arguments.</div> <div> Each year, the Supreme Court receives over 2,000 applications for leave to appeal from litigants primarily seeking review of decisions by the Michigan Court of Appeals. Each justice is responsible for reviewing each case to determine whether leave should be granted. The Court issues a decision in all cases filed with the Clerk's Office.</div> <div> Cases that are accepted for oral argument may be decided by an order, with or without an opinion. These orders may affirm or reverse the Michigan Court of Appeals, may remand a case to the trial court, or may adopt a correct Court of Appeals opinion.</div> <div> The Supreme Court's authority to hear cases is discretionary. The Court grants leave to those cases of greatest complexity and public import, where additional briefing and oral argument are essential to reaching a just outcome.</div> <div> In addition to its judicial duties, the Supreme Court is responsible for the general administrative supervision of all courts in the state. The Supreme Court also establishes rules for practice and procedure in all courts. >><A HREF="http://courts.michigan.gov/supremecourt/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://courts.michigan.gov/supremecourt/"><U><I>Read about the Michigan Supreme Court</I></U></A>.</div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <A HREF="#top_of_page" TITLE="Justice Clifford W. Taylor"><U>back to top</U></A></div> </td> </tr></table></body>