Lambert elected Chief Justice Justice Lambert will take office in 2025

FRANKFORT, Ky., Sept. 23, 2024 – The Justices of the Supreme Court of Kentucky voted to elect Deputy Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert as the next Chief Justice of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Chief Justice-elect Lambert will serve a four-year term beginning Jan. 6, 2025. See the election order at https://kcoj.info/cjelect25.

“Chief Justice-elect Lambert is a hard-working, dedicated and experienced member of the Kentucky Court of Justice, having served as Family Court Judge, Court of Appeals Judge and Justice on the Kentucky Supreme Court. Altogether, she has served as a judge or justice for more than 17 years,” Chief Justice of the Commonwealth Laurance B. VanMeter said. “I am confident that Chief Justice-elect Lambert will lead the Judicial Branch with integrity and ensure the efficient and fair administration of justice for this great commonwealth.”

Chief Justice-elect Lambert said, “I am both humbled and honored to have been elected by my colleagues to serve as the chief justice for the next four years. I know it is certainly no small task to lead the Judicial Branch of government. Our judges, clerks and administrative employees handle large dockets and special programs with great efficiency. While it may be notable that I will be the first woman to serve as chief justice in Kentucky, I am most proud to be a small-town kid from the mountains of Eastern Kentucky who has had a lot of support and encouragement along the way.”  

Chief Justice-elect Lambert was elected as a justice of the Supreme Court in November 2018 from the 3rd Supreme Court District, which is made up of 25 counties. She heads the Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health, a groundbreaking commission that is working to address mental health needs, substance use disorder and intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Justice Lambert came to the Supreme Court after four years on the Kentucky Court of Appeals. Prior to taking the appellate bench, Justice Lambert was a Circuit Judge/Family Court division for the 28th Judicial Circuit, composed of Lincoln, Pulaski and Rockcastle counties. She was appointed to that seat in 1999 by then-Governor Paul E. Patton. While a Family Court Judge, she created the first Drug Court in the area. She was recognized for her efforts in 2002 when the National Association of Drug Court Professionals inducted her into the Stanley M. Goldstein Drug Court Hall of Fame. For several years, she volunteered in area middle schools, working 10 weeks each semester with at-risk children and families in an effort to help them avoid truancy charges.

Justice Lambert volunteers as a certified suicide prevention trainer, training others on how to properly intervene to prevent suicide.

A native of Bell County, Justice Lambert earned a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Kentucky University, where she graduated with distinction. She went on to graduate from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 1989. Justice Lambert practiced law in Mount Vernon, serving as an assistant commonwealth’s attorney and city attorney for the city of Mount Vernon. In 2007, Justice Lambert resumed her private practice of law in Mount Vernon until her election to the Court of Appeals in 2014.

Justice Lambert and her husband, Joseph Sharpe, reside on Lake Cumberland in Burnside in Pulaski County. She is the mother of two sons, Joseph Patrick Lambert and John Ryan Lambert, and two stepdaughters, Jessica Sharpe Guffey and Chelsea Sharpe Woolums. She is also the Nonna of Sam Stringer, Collin Guffey, George Guffey and Fletcher Sharpe Woolums.