She will share her advice and personal history with more than 5,000 undergraduates and their guests at evening ceremony
Kimberly S. Budd, the 38th Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, will present the keynote address at the 156th University of Massachusetts Amherst Commencement on Friday, May 15th at 5 p.m. at McGuirk Alumni Stadium. She will also be presented with an honorary degree to celebrate her long and distinguished record of public service.
More than 20,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony as undergraduate degrees are conferred on more than 5,000 students.
“Chief Justice Budd is an exceptional jurist who has devoted her career to the common good and given voice to those who are not always heard,” said Chancellor Javier A. Reyes. “Her knowledge and experience will inspire our graduates to do more and be more as they embark on their future and legacy after leaving UMass.”
“I look forward to celebrating with the graduates of UMass Amherst as they take their next step toward shaping the future of our Commonwealth,” said Chief Justice Budd.
Budd is the first Black woman to serve as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court. She was nominated to the position following the death of Chief Justice Ralph Gants in 2020. She was first appointed as an Associate Justice on the Court on August 24, 2016.
She began her legal career as a law clerk to Chief Justice Joseph P. Warner of the Massachusetts Appeals Court. She worked as a litigation associate in the Boston office of Mintz before becoming an Associate U.S. Attorney in the Major Crimes and Drug Units of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts where she worked on hundreds of cases, ranging from narcotics to bank robbery to fraud. She also served as a member of an ethics task force convened in response to several corruption scandals on Beacon Hill.
She also served as Associate General Counsel for Harvard University and as Director of the Community Values program at Harvard Business School before becoming Associate Justice for the Massachusetts Superior Court. She has taught at both the New England Law and Harvard Law School.
Budd earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School, and her B.A. from Georgetown University.