Gov. Brad Little has appointed District Judge Cynthia Meyer to a vacant seat on the Idaho Supreme Court, Little’s office announced Monday afternoon.
Meyer, who is the administrative judge in Idaho’s First Judicial District, replaces former Idaho Supreme Court Justice John R. Stegner, who retired Oct. 31.
Meyer will serve out the remainder of Stegner’s term, which expires in January 2027. When the term expires, Meyer will be able to run in a nonpartisan election to remain on the court.
Meyer was appointed to the First Judicial District in 2015. Prior to that, Meyer practiced law and became a partner with the Coeur d’Alene-based firm James, Vernon and Weeks. Meyer also served as an adjunct instructor at North Idaho College from 2005 to 2009.
“Judge Meyer’s strong intellect and writing skills are just two qualities that will make her an excellent addition to the Idaho Supreme Court,” Little said in a written statement Monday. “Her appointment will bring representation from North Idaho to the statewide Idaho Supreme Court, and the materials I reviewed in considering her appointment are evidence she is widely respected by her peers and community as an intelligent, fair, and competent jurist.”
Meyer was one of the four individuals that the Idaho Judicial Council recommended to Little for filling the Idaho Idaho Supreme Court vacancy. The other three individuals the Idaho Judicial Council recommended include attorney Christopher P. Graham, Fourth Judicial District Judge Diane M. Walker and former Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden, according to an Oct. 19 press release issued by the council.
Meyer brings the Idaho Supreme Court back to full strength with five members. The other members of the Idaho Supreme Court are Chief Justice G. Richard Bevan and Justices Robyn M. Brody, Gregory W. Moeller and Colleen D. Zahn.
In a written statement issued Monday, Meyer thanked Little and her family for their support, saying she loved every day of serving as a district judge in North Idaho.
“I am committed to upholding the principles that make our judicial system so strong: the rule of law, justice, and fairness; and I will serve with integrity, with respect and dignity, and with humility,” Meyer said in the written statement.
Meyer is Little’s second appointment to the five-member Idaho Supreme Court. Little previously appointed Zahn to the Idaho Supreme Court in 2021.
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This story was originally published by the Idaho Capital Sun.