--- title: "Patrick E. Donovan | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/patrick-e-donovan-nh-appellate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-07" --- # Patrick E. Donovan Supreme Court of New Hampshire · Senior Associate Justice ## Profile - Court: Supreme Court of New Hampshire - State: New Hampshire - Role: Senior Associate Justice - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-08-22 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - His judicial appointment came in 2018, when Governor Chris Sununu nominated him to succeed Justice Linda Dalianis - In 2000, he returned to private practice, opening Patrick E. Donovan, PLLC in Salem, NH, and later held the role of Legal Counsel to the New Hampshire House of Representatives - focusing on environmental litigation, before joining the New Hampshire Department of Justice in 1994. - Began his legal career as a law clerk to Justice W. Stephen Thayer III of the New Hampshire Supreme Court in 1990 - State Supreme Court law clerk - Assistant Attorney General, New Hampshire Department of Justice, Criminal Bureau - Senior Assistant Attorney General, New Hampshire Department of Justice, Homicide Unit ### Education - Boston College Law School — J.D. (1990) - undergraduate degree — Dartmouth College — 1986 ### Additional information - Patrick Eugene Donovan is an American judge and the 109th Associate Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court, sworn in on May 8, 2018 after unanimous confirmation by the New Hampshire Executive Council. - Patrick E. Donovan joined the New Hampshire Supreme Court in 2018. - Born May 8, 1964, Baltimore, Maryland. - Date of birth: 1964-05-08 - handling complex civil cases, homicide prosecutions, and appellate litigation - Attorney, Private practice, Salem, New Hampshire - Approximately 18 years of civil, commercial and criminal practice. - Served approximately two years. - Gubernatorial nomination with Executive Council confirmation - He then worked as an associate at Goodwin Procter in Boston - He studied at Dartmouth and Boston College Law School, clerked at the state Supreme Court, practiced at Goodwin Procter, and worked in the Attorney General’s criminal and homicide units before returning to private practice in Salem. - He is also the Chairman of the Court’s Advisory Rules Committee - Birth place: Baltimore ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### electronic devices and media Scope: statewide New Hampshire's published statewide guidance requires presiding-judge approval before still or video equipment may be used in a courtroom, and the presiding judge retains discretion over recording devices. Evidence excerpt: The form must be approved by the presiding judge before that individual or organization will be permitted to use still or video equipment in the courtroom. [New Hampshire Judicial Branch Guidelines for Use of Cameras and Audio Equipment](https://www.courts.nh.gov/media/guidelines-use-cameras-and-audio-equipment) Source checked: 2026-07-27 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.courts.nh.gov/our-courts/supreme-court/about/justices) - [Official roster](https://www.courts.nh.gov/our-courts/supreme-court/about/justices) - [New Hampshire Judicial Branch official judicial roster](https://www.courts.nh.gov/our-courts/supreme-court/about/justices) - [New Hampshire Judicial Branch Guidelines for Use of Cameras and Audio Equipment](https://www.courts.nh.gov/media/guidelines-use-cameras-and-audio-equipment) - [Wikidata: Patrick E. Donovan](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55760081) - [UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, Rudman Center leadership biography](https://law.unh.edu/centers-institutes/warren-b-rudman-center/leadership) - [New Hampshire Judicial Branch](https://www.courts.nh.gov/our-courts/supreme-court/about/justices) - [Wikidata: Patrick E. Donovan](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55760081) - [UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, Rudman Center leadership biography](https://law.unh.edu/centers-institutes/warren-b-rudman-center/leadership) - [New Hampshire Judicial Branch](https://www.courts.nh.gov/our-courts/supreme-court/about/justices) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/patrick-e-donovan-nh-appellate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/patrick-e-donovan-nh-appellate", "name": "Patrick E. Donovan | KnowJudges", "description": "Patrick E. Donovan, Supreme Court of New Hampshire. 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