Judges
Commissioners
Superior Court Investiture Ceremony Transcripts, 1966 - 2010

JUDGES

President Judge James T. Vaughn Jr.

The Honorable James T. Vaughn Jr. was appointed Resident Judge in Kent County of the Superior Court of Delaware on October 28, 1998; elevated to President Judge of the Superior Court on October 12, 2004.

President Judge Vaughn received his B.A. from Duke University in 1971 and his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in 1976. Following admission to the Delaware Bar in 1976, he returned to Dover to practice general civil and criminal law in the firm of Vaughn and Vaughn. In 1988 he became a member of the firm of Schmittinger and Rodriguez in Dover.

While in private law practice, he served as an associate member of the Board on Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Delaware, president of the Kent County Bar Association, and vice-president of the Delaware State Bar Association.

President Judge Vaughn is a member of the Kent County Bar Association, Terry-Carey American Inn of Court and National Conference of State Trial Judges. He served as a judicial member of the Joint Bar/Bench Committee on Civility and as a member of the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee.

President Judge Vaughn's present term ends October 11, 2016.

Judge Jerome O. Herlihy

The Honorable Jerome O. Herlihy became an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on February 22, 1989.

Judge Herlihy received his A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1963 and his L.L.B. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1966. Prior to serving on the bench, Judge Herlihy served as a Deputy Attorney General for the State of Delaware, December 1966 to May 1969; Counsel to the Governor of Delaware, from June 1969 to December 1970; and as Chief Deputy Attorney General of State of Delaware from January 1971 to September 1974. From 1974 until 1989 he was in private practice with his brother in the firm of Herlihy and Harker. Judge Herlihy also served on the board of directors of Riverside Hospital in the 80s and early 90s, the last several years as chairman.

He headed the successful Superior Court effort to standardize its sentencing language and to automate the sentencing process. He chaired the Court's committee that designed the system for individual assignment of civil cases. He was the New Castle County Criminal Administrative Judge from February 2003 until December 2005. He became a member of the Sentencing Accountability Commission (SENTAC) in 2003. In 1999, Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice E. Norman Veasey recognized Judge Herlihy for Outstanding Judicial Service.

Judge Herlihy's present term ends April 19, 2013.

Resident Judge T. Henley Graves

The Honorable T. Henley Graves became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on June 1, 1989. He became Resident Judge on January 19, 2000.

Resident Judge Graves received his B.A. in Economics from the University of Delaware in 1970. He received his J.D. with honors from the University of Maryland in 1973. He served as a prosecutor in the State's Attorneys' Office in Baltimore, Maryland and in the Department of Justice in Georgetown, Delaware. Prior to joining the Superior Court, he was a partner with the law firm of Fuqua and Graves in Georgetown, Delaware.

Resident Judge Graves' present term ends January 26, 2024.

Judge Charles H. Toliver IV

The Honorable Charles H. Toliver IV became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on February 9, 1990.

Judge Toliver received his B.A. from Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia in 1972 and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1975. He was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1975.

From 1975 to 1978 he served as Assistant City Solicitor for the City of Wilmington. From 1978 until 1983 he practiced law with Leonard L. Williams and Associates in Wilmington. From 1984 until his appointment to the Superior Court he practiced law with Biggs & Battaglia also in Wilmington. Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Toliver was chairman of the Wilmington Housing Authority and a member of the Delaware Public Employment Relations Board, the Delaware Violent Crimes Compensation Board, the Wilmington Pension Arbitration Board, the Board of Directors of the Wilmington Economic Development Corporation, the St. Anthony's Community Center, and the Greater Wilmington Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Judge Toliver's present term ends April 3, 2014.

Resident Judge Richard R. Cooch

The Honorable Richard R. Cooch became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on August 31, 1992 upon appointment of Governor Michael N. Castle. Prior to that time, Judge Cooch had been a practicing lawyer with the Wilmington, Delaware law firm of Cooch and Taylor for 15 years. He was its Managing Director from 1988 to 1992.

He was then appointed Resident Judge for New Castle County by Governor Thomas R. Carper and assumed that office on May 11, 2000.

Resident Judge Cooch graduated from Wilmington Friends School in 1966, received his B.A. from Williams College in 1970, and was awarded his J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1973. He was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1973. He served as Deputy Attorney General in the Criminal Division of the State of Delaware Department of Justice from 1974-1981.

Resident Judge Cooch was Assistant Treasurer of the Delaware State Bar Association (1985-1987) and Treasurer (1987-1989). He has served on various committees of the Delaware State Bar Association including its Executive Committee. He has served as a member and chair of the Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Litigation Ethical Problems, has served as a member and chair of the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee and was a former chair of the Superior Court Advisory Committee on Criminal Jury Instructions. He is a former Judicial member of the Commission on Continuing Legal Education. He is a member of the Richard S. Rodney Inn of Court. He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the American Judicature Society, and now serves on its National Advisory Committee and on the Advisory Committee to the American Judicature Society Center for Judicial Ethics.

Resident Resident Judge Cooch's present term expires May 11, 2012.

Judge Fred S. Silverman

The Honorable Fred S. Silverman became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware in October 1993.

Judge Silverman received his B.A. from New College, and a J.D. from Boston University School of Law in 1975.

From 1987 to 1993, Judge Silverman was Delaware's Chief Deputy Attorney General. From 1983 to 1987 Judge Silverman was Delaware's State Solicitor. From 1978 until 1983 Judge Silverman served as a prosecutor. Before entering state service, Judge Silverman was an Associate at Biggs & Battaglia.

Judge Silverman's present term ends November 29, 2017.

Judge William C. Carpenter Jr.

The Honorable William C. Carpenter Jr. was appointed to the Superior Court of Delaware in 1993 by Governor Thomas R. Carper and reappointed to that position in 2005 by Governor Ruth Ann Minner.

Judge Carpenter is a 1976 graduate of the Widener University School of Law and received his undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Delaware. After a short time in private practice, he joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office as an Assistant United States Attorney, a position held for over eight years. In 1985, Judge Carpenter was appointed the United States Attorney for the District of Delaware by President Reagan, and he continued in that capacity during the terms of Presidents Bush and Clinton.

During his tenure as United States Attorney he served on the United States Attorney’s Advisory Committee for Attorneys General Meese, Thornburgh and Reno. As United States Attorney, his office was known for its successful public corruption investigations, its aggressive prosecution of organized crime figures involved in drug trafficking and its conviction of four individuals involved in an international extortion attempt of the duPont Company of over ten million dollars

Judge Carpenter is the Chair Elect of the National Conference of State Trial Judges and serves on the executive committee of the Sections Officers Conference (SOC) of the American Bar Association. He also serves as chair of the ABA Judicial Division membership committee. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Delaware Bar Association, American Judicature Society, the American Inns of Court, and serves on the Board of Directors of the Blood Bank of Delaware, the American Red Cross and the DuPont Country Club. He previously served on the Board of Directors of Ursuline Academy, the University of Delaware Alumni Association and the YMCA of Delaware.

Judge Carpenter's present term ends November 29, 2017.

Resident Judge William L. Witham Jr.

The Honorable William L. Witham Jr. became an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on February 18, 1999; he was appointed Kent County Resident Judge on January 19, 2005.

He received his B.A. from the University of Delaware in 1970, and his J.D. from the University of Maryland in 1973. He was admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar in 1975 and the Delaware Bar in 1976. Resident Judge Witham graduated from the United States Army War College in 1998. Prior to joining the Superior Court, Judge Witham was a partner with Prickett, Jones, Elliott & Kristol in Dover, Delaware. He also served as the Kent County Levy Court Attorney in 1999.

During his career, Resident Judge Witham has served as a member of the Board of Bar Examiners, the United States Third Circuit Merit Selection Screening Committee, the Governor's Magistrate Screening Committee, as a trustee of Delaware Technical and Community College, as president of the Central Delaware Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Inc., as a director of the Board of Managers of the Central Delaware YMCA, and as president of the Dover Kiwanis Club. He served as president of the Kent County Bar Association and as the vice-president of the Delaware State Bar Association. He is also a retired Delaware Army National Guard Colonel.

Resident Judge Witham is currently a member of the Delaware State and American Bar Associations, Terry-Carey Inn of Court, and the National Association of Drug Court Professionals. He also is an adjunct professor at Wilmington University.

Resident Judge Witham's present term ends January 19, 2017.

Judge Richard F. Stokes

The Honorable Richard F. Stokes became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on March 23, 1999.

Judge Stokes graduated with honors from Colgate University in 1967 and received his J.D. from Duke University in 1970 receiving an American Jurisprudence Award in criminal law.

He was a Superior Court law clerk for President Judge Albert J. Stiftel (1970-1971). He was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1970. He served as legal advisor with rank of Captain in the United States Air Force from 1971 to 1975 where he was awarded the United States Air Force Commendation Medal, and in 1975, received recognition for professional trial representation from Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force and the Judge Advocate General.

Judge Stokes practiced law in Delaware since 1975 and was the managing partner of Tunnell and Raysor, P.A. He was a member of the Delaware Board of Professional Responsibility, Board of Bar Examiners, and Delaware Insurance Authority. Among other activities, he was chairman, Board of Trustees of Delaware Technical and Community College. He is a charter member of the Terry-Carey American Inn of Court. Judge Stokes also served as Resident Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Georgetown, Delaware from 1996 until 1999.

Judge Stokes' present term ends April 15, 2023.

Judge E. Scott Bradley

The Honorable E. Scott Bradley became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on April 7, 2000.

Judge Bradley received his B.S. magna cum laude in Accounting from the University of Delaware in 1980 and his J.D. magna cum laude from the Widener University School of Law in 1987.

From 1980 until 1984 he was an Accounting Analyst with DuPont. He was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1987 and until his appointment to Superior Court was a partner with the law firm of Young Conaway Stargatt and Taylor, LLP in Georgetown, Delaware. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Delaware State Bar Association, the Sussex County Bar Association, and the Terry-Carey American Inn of Court.

Judge Bradley's present term ends April 7, 2012.

Judge Peggy L. Ableman

The Honorable Peggy L. Ableman became a Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware on October 30, 2000.

Judge Ableman is an honors graduate of Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts, she received her J.D. from Emory University School of Law, where she was Notes and Comments Editor of the Emory Law Journal.

From 1979 until 1983, Judge Ableman was an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Delaware. From 1983 until her appointment to the Superior Court, she was an Associate Judge of the Family Court of the State of Delaware. In 1995, she was the first recipient of the Chief Justice's Award for Outstanding Judicial Service.

Judge Ableman's present term ends October 30, 2012.

Judge Joseph R. Slights III

The Honorable Joseph R. Slights III, was appointed to the Superior Court of Delaware by Governor Thomas R. Carper on November 2, 2000.

Judge Slights received his B.S. in Political Science (with honors) from James Madison University in 1985, and his J.D. degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law in 1988. He was admitted to the Delaware Bar in 1988. He is a member of the Bars of the United States District Court For the District of Delaware, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.

Prior to joining the Superior Court, Judge Slights was an associate in private practice with the firm Richards, Layton & Finger where his practice focused on corporate litigation. Thereafter, he was an associate with the Law Offices of Sidney Balick where he practiced in the areas of personal injury, commercial litigation and white collar criminal defense. From 1992 to 2000, he was a partner with the law firm Morris, James, Hitchens & Williams, where he practiced in the areas of health law, corporate and commercial litigation and white collar criminal defense. He was Vice Chairman of the Health Law practice group and Chairman of the firm’s recruiting committee.

Judge Slights has been elected to serve on The American Law Institute. He is a member of the American Bar Association and the Delaware State Bar Association. He is a past Chairman of the Health Law section and currently serves as the Judicial Member of the Executive Committee of the Delaware State Bar Association. He is a past President of the Richard S. Rodney Inn of Court. He is a charter member of the American College of Business Court Judges, a member of the Advisory Board for the Georgetown University Law Center’s e-Discovery Institute, a member of the National Advisory Council of the American Judicature Society, a member of the AJS Carpenter Jury Center Advisory and Editorial Committee, and an adjunct professor at Widener University School of Law.

He is a recipient of the Delaware State Bar Association’s Distinguished Mentoring Award and the Middle States Council of the Social Studies Distinguished Service Award (recognizing his long time involvement in, and commitment to, the High School Mock Trial program). He has authored or co-authored several articles, including “Alternate Dispute Resolution and Court-Appointed Experts,” Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal, Vol. 6, No. 3 (2006); and “The History of Delaware’s Business Courts,” Business Law Today, Vol. 17, No. 4 (March/April 2008). He presides over the Court’s Seroquel® litigation docket and is a member of the Court’s Complex Commercial Litigation Division.

Judge Slights' current term ends November 2, 2012.

Judge Jan R. Jurden

The Honorable Jan R. Jurden, a Delaware native, was appointed to the Superior Court of Delaware in May 2001.

After serving three years in the United States Army overseas, Judge Jurden received her B.A. summa cum laude from Muhlenberg College in 1985 and her J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law (now the Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University) in 1988 where she was an Articles Editor of the Law Review and a member of the Woolsack Honor Society.

She practiced law as an Associate with the law firm of Young, Conaway, Stargatt & Taylor from 1988 to 1995 concentrating on corporate, commercial and personal injury litigation, and became a Partner in 1996. She continued her law practice at Young, Conaway until May 2001. During her 13 years at Young, Conaway, Judge Jurden litigated cases in the U.S. District Court, Delaware Supreme Court, Superior Court, Court of Chancery, Family Court and Court of Common Pleas.

Since its inception in 2008, Judge Jurden has overseen Superior Court’s Mental Health Court. She oversaw the Conflict Attorney Program, providing representation for indigent defendants from 2006 to 2008. She previously served as Civil Administrative Judge and is currently Criminal Administrative Judge. She is also a member of the Court's Complex Commercial Litigation Division.

Judge Jurden is a member of the American Bar and the Delaware State Bar Associations and the National Association of Women Judges. She is a member of the Advisory Committee on the Delaware Rules of Evidence and the Advisory Committee on Professionalism. She is also a member of the Richard S. Rodney Inn of Court.

Judge Jurden is the 2009 recipient of Sylvia H. Rambo Award presented by the Women’s Law Caucus of the Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law “honoring a woman in the legal profession who has had a distinguished career and who, by example, has made the professional success of other women more likely.”

She was the 1997 recipient of the Caleb R. Layton III Service Award awarded to one who "personifies the qualities of a federal practitioner, legal acumen, professional decorum and public service." She was also the 1996 recipient of the New Lawyers Distinguished Service Award, awarded to one who, "by exemplary leadership and service dedicated to the cause of good citizenship in civic and humanitarian service over a period of less than ten years has maintained the integrity and honored recognition of the legal profession in community affairs and who, as an outstanding Delawarean, has unceasingly advanced the ideals of citizen participation and community accomplishment, thus reflecting high honor on both country and profession."

Judge Jurden's present term ends May 29, 2013.

Judge Calvin L. Scott Jr.

The Honorable Calvin L. Scott Jr. was appointed to the Superior Court of Delaware by Governor Ruth Ann Minner on February 19, 2003.

Judge Scott received his B.S. degree from Carnegie Mellon University and his J.D. and L.L.M. in Corporate Law and Finance from Widener University School of Law.

Prior to joining the Superior Court, he was a Deputy Attorney General in the Delaware Department of Justice, Civil Division. He supervised the group that provides counsel to the state's departments and agencies and performs administrative prosecutions.

Judge Scott is the vice-president-at-large of the Delaware State Bar Association. He served on the board of the Delaware Bar Foundation, the Family Court's Committee on Self Represented Litigants Before the Court, and as chair of the Pro Se Litigation Assistance Committee. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of the Independence School, and on the Board of the Diamond Gymnastics Athletic Association. Judge Scott served on the Delaware Supreme Court's Board of Professional Responsibility, the Permanent Advisory Committee on the Delaware Lawyers' Rules of Professional Conduct and the Committee on Professionalism.

Judge Scott's present term ends February 19, 2015.

Judge Mary Miller Johnston

The Honorable Mary Miller Johnston was appointed to the Superior Court of Delaware on September 25, 2003.

Judge Johnston received her J.D. cum laude from Washington & Lee University School of Law where she served as Lead Article's Editor of the Law Review. She also has a B.A. magna cum laude in music from Wittenberg University, and an M.A. in music from Northwestern University.

Before coming to the bench, Judge Johnston served as Chief Counsel of the Delaware Supreme Court's Office of Disciplinary Counsel, prosecuting attorney discipline cases and unauthorized practice of law matters. She formerly was a partner with Morris James, LLP practicing primarily in the areas of corporate and commercial litigation. She currently is assigned as a member of the Court’s Complex Commercial Litigation Division.

Judge Johnston is past chair of the Delaware State Bar Association's Women and the Law Section; a recipient of the Bar Association's Women’s Leadership Award; and was a member of the Pro Se Litigation Assistance Committee. She is a member of the Delaware Supreme Court's Permanent Advisory Committee on the Delaware Lawyers' Rules of Professional Conduct, the Professionalism Committee, the Court's Commission on Continuing Legal Education, and the Richard S. Rodney Inn of Court. Her past service includes the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee and Judicial Liaison to the Executive Committee of the Delaware State Bar Association. Judge Johnston serves as a member of the Washington & Lee School of Law Council and member of the Board of Governors of Wesley Theological Seminary. She is past president of the Board of Children & Families First.

Judge Johnston's present term ends September 25, 2015.

Judge Robert B. Young

The Honorable Robert B. Young was appointed to the Superior Court of Delaware on February 17, 2005.

Judge Young received his B.A. from Denison University in 1965, and his J.D. from the Ohio State School of Law in 1969. After practice in Dayton, Ohio from 1969 to 1974, he was admitted to practice in Delaware in 1975.

Prior to his appointment to the Superior Court bench he was in partnership with his son at Young & Young in Dover, Delaware.

Judge Young is the past president of the Delaware State Bar Association and the Delaware Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates. He was a past counselor of the Terry-Carey Inn of Court, and was the recipient of its Professionalism Award. In 2005, he received the Shofar Judicial Award for Outstanding Service.

He serves on state boards of the Delaware Senior Olympics and the Blue-Gold All-Star Basketball Games. He is the author of The Trial of Elinor Ruttee, a musical celebrating 300 years of Court on The Green in Dover; and Macbeth—A Family Musical, A Tale of Two Cities—The Rock Opera, Moby Dick—A Maritime Musicale, and An American Tragedy—A Comedy performed by the Delaware State Bar Association for the Combined Campaign for Justice.

Judge Young's present term ends February 17, 2017.

Judge M. Jane Brady

The Honorable M. Jane Brady was appointed to the Superior Court in 2005.

Judge Brady served as Attorney General from 1995-2005, the first woman to serve as Attorney General of the State of Delaware. She graduated from Christiana High School, the University of Delaware and Villanova University School of Law. From 1977 until 1990, she served as a Deputy Attorney General in the Delaware Department of Justice, culminating with three years of service as Chief Prosecutor in Sussex County. Judge Brady entered private practice in 1990, where she remained until her election as Attorney General.

Judge Brady has served on the American Bar Association's Criminal Justice Section Council, the American Bar Association's Standards Task Force on Biological Evidence and the Advisory Committee of the American Bar Association's National Symposium on the American Jury System. She is a member of the Terry-Carey American Inn of Court.

She is also the founder of KINfolk, a nonprofit agency that provides free computers and Internet accounts to children facing long hospital stays, enabling them to keep in touch with family, friends and schoolwork.

Judge Brady's present term ends December 7, 2017.

Judge John A. Parkins Jr.

The Honorable John A. Parkins Jr. was appointed to the Superior Court by Governor Ruth Ann Minner and began service on August 21, 2008.

Judge Parkins' present term ends July 21, 2020.

Judge Diane Clarke Streett

The Honorable Diane Clarke Streett was appointed to the Superior Court by Governor Jack A. Markell and began service February 15, 2010.

Judge Streett has a B.S. degree in Labor Economics from Cornell University and received her J.D. degree from Cornell University Law School. Judge Streett had more than 35 years experience as a practicing attorney and is licensed in Delaware, New York, and Washington, D.C.

She previously served as the New Castle County Register of Wills from 2001-2010. She was also an adjunct instructor at Wilmington University.

In 2000, she was the City Solicitor for the City of Wilmington. Prior to that, she appeared in court on a daily basis as a prosecutor, and later as a criminal defense attorney. Having represented both sides of the criminal justice system in major felony cases she brings a broad perspective to the issues of crime and its victims. Her tenure in Washington D.C. was spent as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and as Counsel to the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committees. She also served as an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County (Brooklyn), New York.

Judge Streett has been a part of several innovative programs including Delaware’s first Drug Court, the Governor’s Oversight Committee on Juvenile Detention, and Brooklyn, New York’s first sex crimes unit in the district attorney’s office. She is also the co-author of a chapter of the book, The Delaware Bar in the Twentieth Century.

Judge Streett's present term ends February 15, 2022.