FRANKFORT, Ky., June 17, 2025 – The Supreme Court of Kentucky will dedicate a portrait of Deputy Chief Justice Lisabeth T. Hughes (ret.) at an unveiling ceremony Friday at the Capitol. The event is open to the public and will take place at 1 p.m. EDT in the historic Supreme Court Courtroom on the second floor.
Justice Hughes served more than 15 years on the Supreme Court, retiring in January 2023. The justice from the 4th Supreme Court District of Jefferson County was appointed to the court in 2007 and then elected to the court in 2008 and 2014. In 2017, Chief Justice of Kentucky John D. Minton Jr. (ret.) named her deputy chief justice, a role she held until her retirement. The deputy chief justice fills in when the chief justice cannot preside over a case or administrative matter.
Speakers at the dedication will include Chief Justice of the Commonwealth Debra Hembree Lambert, Chief Justice Minton and attorney Virginia Snell Brown.
Before taking the Supreme Court bench, Justice Hughes, who is a Princeton native, served three years as a Kentucky Court of Appeals judge and nearly eight years as a Jefferson Circuit Court judge.
The portrait dedication will be the Supreme Court’s last public event in the Capitol before it moves to its temporary home at 669 Chamberlin Ave. for Capitol renovations.
Supreme Court of Kentucky
The Supreme Court is the state court of last resort and the final interpreter of Kentucky law. Seven justices sit on the Supreme Court and all seven justices rule on appeals that come before the court. The justices are elected from seven appellate districts and serve eight-year terms. A chief justice, chosen for a four-year term by fellow justices, is the administrative head of the state’s court system and is responsible for its operation. The Supreme Court may order a ruling or opinion to be published, which means that the ruling becomes the case law governing all similar cases in the future in Kentucky.
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