Judge Goodwine

She moved to Lexington in November of 1979 to begin her career as a court reporter. Despite many tragedies and obstacles, including surviving a life threatening illness, Judge Goodwine graduated with honors from the University of Kentucky, Carol Martin Gatton College of Business in 1991. She graduated from the University of Kentucky, College of Law... in 1994 and was admitted to practice law in the Commonwealth of Kentucky in October 1994. Judge Goodwine was employed by the law firm of Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs from 1994 until her appointment to the bench in August of 1999. Judge Goodwine became the first African American woman to be appointed and subsequently elected to the bench in Fayette County, Kentucky. Prior to her appointment to the bench, Judge Goodwine served as a commissioner of and also chaired the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights. Since 1997, Judge Goodwine has served as treasurer of the National Bar Association, John Rowe Chapter here in Lexington. Judge Goodwine was inducted into the Carol Martin Gatton College of Business and Economics Alumni Hall of Fame in February 2000. She was named the Fayette County Bar Association's 2001 Outstanding Young Lawyer. Judge Goodwine became Chief Regional District Judge in December 2002. She was elected to the Fayette Circuit Court in November 2003 to complete an unexpired term. Judge Goodwine was elected to a full term in November 2006. Since 2006, Judge Goodwine has voluntarily presided over Fayette County Specialty Court. On September 21, 2012, Judge Goodwine received the Henry V. Pennington Trial Judge of the Year Award from the Kentucky Justice Association. She served as Regional Vice-Chief for the 22nd Judicial Circuit for eight years (2008 to 2016) and was elected to serve as Regional Chief Judge for the 22nd Judicial Circuit in December 2016. She now has over 19 years of experience as a trial judge. On December 3, 2017, Judge Goodwine was inducted into the Nu Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honorary at the University of Kentucky. In ...Read More