Paul H. Anderson was an associate justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court. He served in this capacity from July 1, 1994, until May 2013 when he reached the state's mandatory retirement age.[1][2]
Justice Anderson earned his bachelor's degree from Macalester College in 1965 and his J.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1968.[3]
Prior to joining the supreme court, Anderson served as chief judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals from September 1992 to June 30, 1994. He was an associate and partner with the firm LeVander, Gillen & Miller Law Offices in South St. Paul from 1971 to 1992. Anderson was a special assistant attorney general, Criminal Division and Department of Public Safety, Office of Minnesota Attorney General from 1970 to 1971. He was also a VISTA (Volunteers In Service to America) attorney from 1968 to 1969, and served as a neighborhood attorney for New Haven Legal Assistance in New Haven, Connecticut.[3]
Justice Anderson comments on Chief Justice Magnuson's resignation and state of Minnesota Supreme Court.
A Right Wing MN Chief Justice? Justice Anderson Thinks Not.
Anderson was re-elected to the court in 2008.
Candidate | Incumbent | Primary % | Election % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Paul Anderson ![]() |
Yes | 63.8% | 60.4% | |
Tim Tingelstad | No | 21.8% | 39.2% | |
Alan Nelson | No | 14.5% |
In October 2012, political science professors Adam Bonica and Michael Woodruff of Stanford University attempted to determine the partisan ideology of state supreme court justices. They created a scoring system in which a score above 0 indicated a more conservative-leaning ideology, while scores below 0 were more liberal.
Anderson received a campaign finance score of -0.27, indicating a liberal ideological leaning. This was more liberal than the average score of -0.07 that justices received in Minnesota.
The study was based on data from campaign contributions by the judges themselves, the partisan leaning of those who contributed to the judges' campaigns, or, in the absence of elections, the ideology of the appointing body (governor or legislature). This study was not a definitive label of a justice, but an academic summary of various relevant factors.[7]
Federal courts:
Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Minnesota • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Minnesota
State courts:
Minnesota Supreme Court • Minnesota Court of Appeals • Minnesota District Courts • Minnesota Problem-Solving Courts • Minnesota Tax Court • Minnesota Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals
State resources:
Courts in Minnesota • Minnesota judicial elections • Judicial selection in Minnesota