John D. Minton Jr. was elected to the Supreme Court in 2006 and re-elected to another eight-year term in 2014. He's serving his third four-year term as chief justice. The Kentucky court system has been transformed in many areas during his administration. He has made it a priority to invest in the people who operate the courts and in the court technology that can cut costs and deliver better service. His sweeping technology initiative has brought eFiling to every Kentucky county. He addressed lagging Judicial Branch compensation by overhauling the salary structure for court employees and increasing pay for justices, judges, and circuit court clerks.
During his tenure, the Supreme Court has adopted the state's first uniform family law rules and Juvenile Court rules. He also led efforts to draft Kentucky's first statewide Judicial Redistricting Plan in decades. He has worked with the Executive and Legislative branches to carry out penal code and juvenile justice reform. In 2016-17, he served as president of the Conference of Chief Justices and chair of the National Center for State Courts Board of Directors. He was appointed to the State Justice Institute Board of Directors in 2016. He was previously in private practice and a judge for the Circuit Court and Court of Appeals. He holds degrees from Western Kentucky University and the University of Kentucky College of Law.