Learn more about Shirley S. Abrahamson through the following resources:
Donated Papers
Abrahamson donated her personal papers, photographs, audio recordings, and video recordings to the Wisconsin Historical Society. Visit wisconsinhistory.org
Published Opinions
Abrahamson participated in over 3,500 Wisconsin Supreme Court decisions. She authored 535 majority opinions, 493 dissenting opinions, and 326 concurring opinions. To explore her opinions, visit the Opinions page of this website.
Published Articles and Speeches
Abrahamson published over 40 articles and gave countless speeches. Click here for a partial list of articles and speeches that appeared in scholarly journals
State of the Judiciary Addresses
Each year the chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court gives a major “State of the Judiciary” address highlighting the Wisconsin judiciary’s accomplishments from the past year and its goals for the upcoming year. To read the addresses that Abrahamson gave during her tenure as chief justice, click here.
The Wisconsin Court System’s website includes links to a variety of materials authored by, or prepared at Abrahamson’s direction. It also includes an archive of The Third Branch, a newsletter about the Wisconsin judiciary that began in 1997. The Third Branch includes many articles about and photos of Abrahamson.
Audio and Videos
Listen to oral arguments that Abrahamson participated in using the “audio playback” feature on Wicourts.gov. In 2007 Wisconsineye.org began videotaping and publishing Wisconsin Supreme Court arguments and conferences. Visit Wisconsineye.org’s Supreme Court page to watch Abrahamson preside over and/or participate in these proceedings.
The State Bar of Wisconsin’s website has hundreds of articles about or mentioning Abrahamson. Read, in particular, the article, “Shirley Abrahamson: A Legacy of Judicial Service,” published in the Wisconsin Lawyer magazine shortly before her retirement in 2019.
Data
Scowstats.com tracks and publishes data about the Wisconsin Supreme Court, the voting patterns of its justices, and other trends. For posts featuring Abrahamson specifically, see Justice Abrahamson by the Numbers, Justice Abrahamson’s Influence: Part 2, and Justice Abrahamson’s Prominence: Part 3