The Philadelphia Bar Association issued the following statement in memory of former Pennsylvania State Supreme Court Judge Sandra Schultz Newman who died February 2. Newman was the first elected female justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. She was elected to the Supreme Court in 1995, serving until 2006. In 2025, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Philadelphia Courtroom was named in her honor.
Prior to her election to the Supreme Court, Justice Newman served as a judge on the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court from 1994 to1995. She was the first female Assistant District Attorney in Montgomery County and spent more than 20 years in private practice. She graduated from Villanova University law school and received a bachelor’s degree from Drexel University and a master’s degree from Temple University.
“We were saddened to learn of the passing of Justice Sandra Schultz Newman, who had a pathbreaking career as an attorney, judge and Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice. During her time on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, she acted as liaison to the First Judicial District from 2002-2006. Her work with the First Judicial District and with our Association helped to achieve a more just and efficient judicial system for the City of Philadelphia,” Chancellor Ezra Wohlgelernter said. “We are deeply grateful for her years of valuable service to our city and to the Commonwealth.”
“Justice Newman was also a valued member of the Philadelphia Bar Association for more than 50 years and served as a distinguished speaker at our events throughout her career,” Wohlgelernter said. “We were honored to recognize Justice Newman with a resolution by our Board of Governors upon her retirement from the Supreme Court in 2006. She will be greatly missed, and we offer our heartfelt condolences to her family, friends and colleagues.”
Services for Justice Newman will be private. Her family asks that contributions her memory be made to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.
