Honorable Marilyn M. Sullivan

Sullivan, the Honorable Marilyn M. retired Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Land Court died Tuesday, February 20, 2007 after a period of declining health. She was a resident of West Harwich and Quincy. Devoted sister of Joan Sullivan with whom she lived. Cousin of Marcia and her husband John Coe of Cohasset, and Elaine Hussey of Portsmouth, NH and their families. She is also survived by her cousins John and Kevin Sullivan, Kathy Sullivan, Thomas Manning, Libby Bolduc, and Peggy Sharyon, and her adored black miniature poodle, Pouche, of whom she was so proud. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the funeral from the Keohane Funeral Home, 785 Hancock St., WOLLASTON, Monday at 9 AM. Funeral Mass in Sacred Heart Church, N. Quincy at 10:00 AM. Visiting hours Saturday 2 – 5 and Sunday 2 – 6 PM. Burial in Calvary Cemetery, Portsmouth, NH. Donations in memory of Judge Sullivan may be made to Family Pantry 133 Queen Anne Road Harwich, MA 02645; St. Vincent de Paul – Holy Trinity Church PO Box 428 West Harwich, MA 02671; Renovation Fund – Holy Trinity Church PO Box 428 West Harwich, MA 02671; or Sacred Heart Church, 386 Hancock St. Quincy, MA 02171. The Honorable Marilyn M. Sullivan retired Justice and Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Land Court died Tuesday, February 20, 2007 after a period of declining health. She was a resident of West Harwich and Quincy, Massachusetts. Judge Sullivan was born in Portsmouth, NH. The daughter of Joseph D. and Mary (McWilliams) Sullivan of that city. Her father was a practicing attorney there for many years. The family moved to the Wollaston section of Quincy in 1932 and maintain a home there to this day. Judge Sullivan graduated first in her class from North Quincy High School in 1941 and went on to Radcliffe College, from which she graduated in 1944, having completed her under graduate work in three years. She was made a member of Phi Beta Kappa in her junior year and graduated Magna Cum Laude. Upon graduation, she became an officer in the U.S.N.R. (W) and served until 1946 in Washington DC. As a government major in college, she was fascinated by the workings of Congress and spent much of her free time at the Capital watching the proceedings. She was discharged from the Navy in 1946, as a Lieutenant (j.g.) and went to Columbia Law School, thanks in great measure to the G.I. Bill of Rights. She graduated from Columbia in February , 1949, having accelerated her work once again, and was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar in the fall of 1949 and subsequently to the U. S. Federal District Court. Justice Sullivan’s first position in the legal field was a Clerk to Justice Henry T. Lummus of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, from 1949-1951. She was associated with the firm of Ropes and Gray from 1951-1973. When she was appointed the a first woman justice of the Land Court by Governor Francis Sargent. She sat on the court for twenty years, which were the happiest and most satisfying years of her legal career. Judge Sullivan achieved another “first” in 1985 when she was nominated by the Justices of the Supreme Judicial Court, to be the first woman Chief Justice of any Massachusetts Court at that time in the history of the Massachusetts Court systems. She was awarded an honorary J.D. degree by New England School of Law in May, 1986. After her retirement, she was an adjunct Professor of Law at Suffolk Law School and New England School of Law. Judge Sullivan was a member of the Massachusetts and Boston Bar Association; Massachusetts Association of Women Lawyers; National Association of Women Judges; Harvard Club of Cape Cod; and Holy Trinity Women’s Guild. Judge Sullivan was a great fan of the Boston Red Sox and Patriots. She also loved to read mystery books.