--- title: "Susan M. Carney | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-m-carney-chief-justice-alaska-supreme-court-ak" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-07" --- # Susan M. Carney Alaska Supreme Court · Chief Justice ## Profile - Court: Alaska Supreme Court - State: Alaska - Role: Chief Justice - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-10-02 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - American attorney and jurist who served as Chief Justice of the Alaska Supreme Court since January 10, 2025, while also continuing as an associate justice of the court - Law clerk for Alaska Supreme Court Justice Jay Rabinowitz; assistant public defender in Anchorage and Fairbanks; assistant public advocate based in Fairbanks from 1998 until her Supreme Court appointment ### Education - Bachelor’s degree in history and literature from Radcliffe College (Harvard University) and J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School. ### Additional information - In 2025, she led the first majority-female Alaska Supreme Court in history. - Appointed to the Alaska Supreme Court in May 2016. - Born June 17, 1961, in Worcester, Massachusetts. - Recognized for her deep understanding of rural Alaska’s legal and social dynamics due to her extensive trial experience. - Carney has emphasized the importance of judicial diversity and the role of women in law, noting the growth of opportunities for women in legal careers. - As Chief Justice, Carney presides over the Alaska Supreme Court’s work, manages the court’s administrative functions, and represents the judiciary in public and legislative matters. ## 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 ### photography filming recording Scope: statewide Alaska generally prohibits photographing, filming, and recording in courthouse common areas unless an application is approved, while separate courtroom and adjacent-area rules remain governed by Administrative Rule 50 and Administrative Bulletin No. 45. Evidence excerpt: Except as specifically authorized by this order, photographing, filming, and recording are permitted in common areas inside the courthouse only upon the issuance of an approved application. [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### courtroom media requests Scope: statewide Alaska states that media may request permission from a judicial officer for coverage inside a particular courtroom or adjacent area, and the judicial officer rules on those requests. Evidence excerpt: not intended to interfere with or restrict the rights of the media to request permission from a judicial officer to allow media coverage within a particular courtroom or adjacent area [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [Official roster](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [Alaska Court System official judicial roster](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) - [Hearings & Trials](https://courts.alaska.gov/trialcourts/hearings.htm) - [ajc.alaska.gov](https://ajc.alaska.gov/judges/judgemain.html) - [en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_M._Carney) - [ajc.alaska.gov](https://ajc.alaska.gov/judges/judgemain.html) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/trialcourts/hearings.htm) - [en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_M._Carney) - [ajc.alaska.gov](https://ajc.alaska.gov/judges/judgemain.html) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/judges/) - [courts.alaska.gov](https://courts.alaska.gov/trialcourts/hearings.htm) - [en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_M._Carney) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-m-carney-chief-justice-alaska-supreme-court-ak", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-m-carney-chief-justice-alaska-supreme-court-ak", "name": "Susan M. 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Carney", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-m-carney-chief-justice-alaska-supreme-court-ak" } ] } ] } ``` ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Presiding Judges' Statewide Order on Use of Cameras and Electronic Devices in Common Areas of Court Facilities](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-4195c4aa8c36145cd11c25b9) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim. Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://courts.alaska.gov/jord/docs/2023/statewide-electronic-devices.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26.