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*For Immediate Release:    *     
August 7, 2025
          
*Contact:    *     
Grace Hoge
[email protected]

*Governor Kelly Appoints Attorney Larkin Walsh
to Fill Vacancy on the Kansas Supreme Court*

*
TOPEKA *– Governor Laura Kelly today appointed attorney Larkin Walsh to the Kansas Supreme Court. Walsh will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Evelyn Z. Wilson.

“Appointing justices to the Kansas Supreme Court is one of the most important responsibilities I have as governor, and it is not one I take lightly,” *Governor Laura Kelly said.* “Justices must have a deep knowledge of the law and take into account many complex and nuanced situations that impact Kansans and shape our state every day.”

“Our state’s process for nominating Kansas Supreme Court justices produces highly qualified nominees and incorporates voices from across the state. This year in particular, produced three extremely qualified nominees, and I am grateful for the service to Kansas each of them exemplifies.”

“Larkin’s extensive legal experience and her background of service makes her an excellent addition to the Kansas Supreme Court. Her deep understanding of appellate courts, combined with her breadth of experience in civil practice, gives her a unique and invaluable perspective.”

“Throughout her career, Larkin has been dedicated to upholding the law and beyond this, she has served the legal community and public through many leadership positions and volunteer roles. I’m confident that her legal skills and work ethic make her immensely qualified to serve as the next Kansas Supreme Court justice.”

Walsh has been a lawyer with the Stueve Siegel and Hanson law firm since 2024, where she currently serves as senior counsel. In this role, her primary areas of focus include appellate, civil rights, consumer protection, and labor and employment law. She has developed a robust appellate practice and has briefed and argued cases in the Kansas appellate courts, as well as in the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Sixth Circuit, Ninth Circuit, Tenth Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Previously, Walsh was an attorney with Sharp Law and Chinnery Evans & Nail law firms. She spent eight years advising the judiciary at both the federal district court and state appellate court levels, as a law clerk at the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas and at the Kansas Supreme Court. Walsh was a clerk for Judge Carlos Murguia of the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas and a research attorney for former Kansas Supreme Court Justice Carol Beier.

Walsh earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Southern Methodist University where she graduated Cum Laude and was a President’s Scholar. She earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Kansas  School of Law where she was co-managing editor of the KU Law Newspaper, an articles editor and staff member of the Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy, a University Merit Scholar, and earned The Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction Awards for first in class in Law and the Visual Arts and Law and Literature.

Walsh has held numerous roles in the legal community and beyond. She was appointed in 2014 by the Kansas Supreme Court to serve on the Board of Law Examiners, a ten-member Board of Kansas lawyers and judges tasked with overseeing all matters related to applications for admission, character, and fitness, testing accommodations, temporary permits to practice, and legal intern permits for practice in Kansas.

In 2017, Walsh was selected by the federal district court for the District of Kansas to serve on the Bench-Bar Committee, which serves general advisory and liaison roles with respect to the operation of the court. She subsequently served on an ad hoc committee recommending revisions to the District of Kansas Local Civil Rules. She has served on the editorial committee of the Kansas Bar Association’s Annual Survey of Law for more than 20 years, co-chairing the committee for 10 of those years.

Among other civic and volunteer activities, Walsh served as secretary pro tem of Uncle Sam’s Academy for Tots in Kansas City, Kansas, and as a volunteer and supporter of HALO, serving homeless youth.

“I am deeply honored by the Governor’s trust, humbled by her confidence, and grateful for the opportunity to serve the people of Kansas as a member of our state’s highest court,” *said Larkin Walsh*. “I have a profound respect for the institution of the judiciary, its role in our three-part system of government, and the responsibility of a Justice to protect the foundational principles set forth in our state and federal constitutions.”

“My twenty years of experience have reinforced my commitment to the fundamental mission of the courts, which is to ensure access to fair and impartial justice through fidelity to the Rule of Law. I will strive to be the type of Justice that all Kansans deserve: one who, with a clear understanding of the legal issues, will faithfully interpret and impartially apply the law to the unique facts of each case, irrespective of popular opinion or the political winds, while maintaining an awareness of each decision’s impact on people and on history. The citizens of Kansas deserve nothing less."

Kansas Supreme Court Justices are appointed through a merit-based nomination process. When there is a vacancy on the court, the Supreme Court Nominating Commission submits the names of three nominees to the governor. The governor then has 60 days to make the appointment.  

The Supreme Court Nominating Commission is an independent body created by the Kansas Constitution. Four of its members are appointed by the governor from each of the state’s four congressional districts. These appointees are not attorneys. Four other members are attorneys elected by attorneys in each of the state's congressional districts. The commission chair is an attorney elected by attorneys in a statewide vote.

To be eligible, a nominee must be at least 30 years old and admitted to practice in Kansas and engaged in the practice of law for at least 10 years, whether as a lawyer, judge, or full-time teacher at an accredited law school.  

Every justice must stand for a retention vote in the general election following their initial appointment. If retained by voters at that time, they then face retention votes every six years for as long as they serve on the bench.

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