Is the name a coincidence?
Justice Henry duPont Ridgely
The Honorable Henry duPont Ridgely was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware on July 22, 2004. From 1984 until his appointment as a Justice, he served as a general jurisdiction trial judge on the Superior Court of Delaware. From 1990 until 2004, he was the President Judge of the Superior Court of Delaware.
Justice Ridgely received his B.S. in Business Administration from Syracuse University in 1971, his J.D. from The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law in 1973, and his LL.M. in Corporation Law from George Washington University Law School in 1974. He received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Widener University School of Law in 2010. Before being appointed to the bench, he was a partner in the firm of Ridgely and Ridgely in Dover, Delaware. At the time of his appointment as a Justice in 2004, Justice Ridgely was the Chair-Elect of the National Conference of State Trial Judges.
Justice Ridgely is a Member of the American Law Institute, a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, a Fellow of the National Conference of State Trial Judges, a Member of the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates, a Member of the Executive Committee of the Appellate Judges Conference of the Judicial Division of the American Bar Association, a Member of the American Inns of Court Leadership Council, a former Trustee of the American Inns of Court, a Member of the National Advisory Council of the American Judicature Society and a former Member of the American Judicature Society’s Board of Directors. He serves as a Judicial Advisor to the Business and Corporate Litigation Committee of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association.
Justice Ridgely is the Chair of the Delaware Supreme Court's e-Filing Committee and previously served as Co-Chair of the ABA Judicial Division’s Court Technology Committee. In 2005 the Delaware Supreme Court became the first appellate court in the nation to implement electronic filing of appeals. He is the Chair of the Delaware Courts Automation Project. Justice Ridgely is the Co-Chair of the Delaware Supreme Court Task Force on Criminal Justice and Mental Health. In 2010, the Task Force issued a Strategic Plan for Delaware which was endorsed by the Delaware Criminal Justice Council. He also is the Co-Chair of the Delaware Criminal Justice Council’s Committee on Racial and Ethnic Fairness. In 2010, the Council was the first in the nation to adopt a Declaration of Leading Practices to Protect Civil Rights and Promote Racial and Ethnic Fairness in the Criminal Justice System.
Justice Ridgely is an Adjunct Professor at the George Washington University Law School and an Advisory Board Member of the Center for Law, Economics & Finance of the George Washington University. He is a Charter Member and former President of the Terry-Carey American Inn of Court, and a Charter Member of the Richard K. Herrmann Technology Inn of Court. He was presented the American Bar Association's and National Center for State Courts' Award for Outstanding Service in Adopting and Implementing Standards Relating to Juror Use and Management in 1993. In 2000 the American Board of Trial Advocates - Delaware Chapter presented him its Award for Judicial Professionalism and Civility. In 1997 and in 2011 he received the Chief Justice of Delaware’s Award for Outstanding Judicial Service.
His current term as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware ends July 22, 2016.