Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Janet C. Protasiewicz will be the keynote speaker at the 2025 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 9, at Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center Exhibition Hall, 1 John Nolen Drive, Madison. It will also be livestreamed via Zoom.
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 Protasiewicz was elected to the Wisconsin Supreme Court on April 4, 2023, and took office on Aug. 1 of that year. Prior to her current role, Justice Protasiewicz served as a Circuit Court Judge in Milwaukee County – first elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2020.
While in Circuit Court, Justice Protasiewicz handled a variety of cases, including homicides, sexual assaults, drug-related offenses and domestic violence cases. Her latest rotation was in the Family Division, where she handled divorce matters and issues related to child custody and placement disputes.
Justice Protasiewicz proudly served for 25 years in the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, where she worked to keep our communities safe. She prosecuted violent crimes, handled termination of parental rights cases and worked to protect children in need of protection and services.
She is a magna cum laude graduate of UW–Milwaukee and a graduate of Marquette University Law School.
Justice Protasiewicz has taught Trial Advocacy at the National Advocacy Center in Columbia, South Carolina, and Marquette University Law School. She has also worked as a volunteer grading the Wisconsin Bar exam.
Her numerous awards include the Community Involvement Award from the Association of Women Lawyers and the Women of Influence Award from the Wisconsin Law Journal. She continues to serve the community by working as a volunteer with the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Red Cross, The Polish Heritage Alliance and Marquette University Law School.
Related content:
- Faculty, student speakers announced
- Jim Sensenbrenner ‘68, who represented Wisconsin in the U.S. House of Representatives for 42 years, will be a special guest at the Hooding Ceremony ahead of receiving an honorary doctorate degree from UW–Madison. Learn more about him from our Spring 2023 Gargoyle story.
Submitted by Law School News on April 23, 2025
This article appears in the categories: Features
