Justice Louis B. Butler Jr. '77 will be the keynote speaker at the 2023 University of Wisconsin Law School Hooding Ceremony. The ceremony, open to UW Law School students and their family and friends, will take place at 1 p.m. Friday, May 12, at Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center Exhibition Hall, 1 John Nolen Drive, Madison. At the ceremony—a special recognition for students receiving law degrees—faculty members place the hood over the head of the graduate to signify their success in completing their law degree. The hooding event is in addition to, and does not replace, the university-wide commencement. 

Justice Butler became the first Black Wisconsin Supreme Court member in 2004 when he was appointed by Gov. Jim Doyle. He served until his term came up for election in 2008, when he was defeated by Justice Michael J. Gableman.

Justice Butler has received numerous awards, including:

• American Federation of Teachers, Local 212, Humanitarian of the Year, 2006,
• NAACP Foot Soldiers' Award, 2005,
• Wisconsin Council of Deliberations, Prince Hall Masons Outstanding Citizen's Award, 2005 and
• Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Trail Blazer Award, 2002 and 2004.

A native of Chicago, Justice Butler earned his bachelor's degree from Lawrence University in 1973 before graduating from UW Law in 1977. After serving as an assistant state public defender from 1979 to 1992, he was appointed to the Milwaukee Municipal Court. He served as a municipal judge until 2002, when he was elected to Branch 9 of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court.

Justice Butler received an honorary doctorate in humanities from Lawrence University in 2007 and he was recently named as one of the 2023 recipients of the Lawrence University's Alumni Awards, an honor he will accept this June.

He is a distinguished faculty member of the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada, and he previously served as member of the bench in the Southwestern Law School Moot Court Competition in Los Angeles. He was also an adjunct assistant professor of law at Marquette Law School. He is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Bar Association, NAACP lifetime member, and a member of the Thomas Fairchild Chapter of the American Inns of Court.

The Law School will livestream the ceremony on YouTube.

Submitted by Law School News on April 12, 2023

This article appears in the categories: Features