Photo Credit: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Retired SJC Chief Justice Roderick L. Ireland poses with his official portrait.
The portrait of the Honorable Roderick L. Ireland, who served as
the Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court from
2010-2014 and Associate Justice from 1997-2010, was presented to
the Supreme Judicial Court on Sept. 29 at the John Adams
Courthouse.
Following the unveiling of the portrait, the Honorable Roderick
L. Ireland delivered remarks in the Seven Justice Courtroom. "I
knew that my success or failure was bigger than Rick Ireland - in
the sense that it was not just personal to me - it was bigger
because, in my mind, I represented an entire race every day," he
said. "History will decide how I actually did. But I did my best
and I hope that over the course of my 37-year career I helped, at
least in a small way, to see that justice was done here in the
commonwealth.
I hope that I helped to improve the quality of the Massachusetts
Court System; that I helped improve relations with the other two
branches of government; and that I represented the court system in
a dignified and thoughtful way," he continued. "Through it all, I
always had a simple goal -- to do justice."