News Archive

Judge Margret G. Robb, J.D. ’78, was inducted into the Council of Chief Justices of the State Courts of Appeal (CCJSCA) Hall of Fame on November 15, 2024. The award was presented during the annual conference and business meeting in Monterey, California. Judge Robb served as the group’s president in 2019.

This honor is for council members who provided “extensive service to the CCJSCA that advanced the CCJSCA mission in a unique and extraordinary manner.” The group is an association of the National Center for State Courts and is an organization of all current and past chief judges across the nation.

Notably, Judge Mark Pfeiffer, president of CCJSCA, commended Judge Robb for her efforts to “give back” to every community the conference visited, starting a book drive that has become a hallmark of the organization's outreach. 

“Judge Robb's trailblazing career is inspiring to our students and to lawyers throughout our state,” said IU McKinney Dean Karen E. Bravo. “I'm delighted to see her honored for her hard work in this way.”

Some of Judge Robb’s awards include the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law Distinguished Alumni, Indianapolis Business Journal Woman of Influence, Indiana State Bar Association “100 Years of Women in the Legal Profession,” appointment to the ABA committee responsible for accrediting law schools, and election as president of the national Council of Chief Judges of State Courts of Appeal.

Judge Robb, a magna cum laude graduate of IU McKinney, was appointed to the Indiana Court of Appeals in July 1998 by then-Governor Frank O’Bannon. She was named Chief Judge of that court in early 2011, the first time a woman has held that position in the court’s more than 100-year history.

Prior to her appointment to the Indiana Court of Appeals, Judge Robb practiced law in Lafayette for 20 years and served as a Chapter 11, 12 and a standing Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee for the Northern District of Indiana. She was a registered family and civil mediator and served as a Tippecanoe County deputy public defender.

Judge Robb Chaired the 2004 National Association of Women Judges' annual conference, the 2010 ABA's Appellate Judges Council - Appellate Judges Education Institute's national Summit for Judges, Lawyers and Staff attorneys, the 2015 annual conference of the Council of Judges of State Courts of Appeal, and co-chaired the Education committee of the 2016 International Association of Women Judges Biennial Conference held in Washington, D.C.

Judge Robb has served as president of the IU McKinney Alumni Association, the bankruptcy section of the Indiana State Bar Association, the Indiana Bar Foundation, appellate practice section of the Indiana State Bar Association, the Appellate Judges Council of the American Bar Association, and the Appellate Judges Education Institute. She has been an officer of the Indiana State Bar Association, the Fellows of the Indiana State Bar Foundation, Tippecanoe County Bar Association, and the National Association of Women Judges. She has also been a board member of the Indianapolis Bar Association, the Indianapolis Bar Foundation, and the Senior Council Section of the Indianapolis Bar Association. She was the moderator for the 2005-2006 and chair for the 2006-2007 Indianapolis Bar Association’s Bar Leader Series. For 17 years, Judge Robb chaired a continuing legal education program that raised over a million dollars to fund scholarships for law school students. She is also a member of the American Bar Foundation, American Judicature Society, a Master Fellow of the Indiana State Bar Foundation. and is an elected member of the American Law Institute. She is a frequent speaker and author on legal topics for attorneys, other judges, and professional, civic and community organizations.

In the photo, Judge Robb, right, accepts the award from Judge Pfeiffer.