Our awards & recognitions

The William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence is one of our nation's highest judicial honors.

Presented annually, this prestigious award honors a state court judge who demonstrates the outstanding qualities of judicial excellence, including integrity, fairness, open-mindedness, knowledge of the law, professional ethics, creativity, sound judgment, intellectual courage, and decisiveness. The award recognizes judges who are taking bold steps to address various issues affecting their communities.

"His dedication to duty was an inspiration to me, and I know to many others. [Rehnquist] reinforced my view that a certain humility should characterize the judicial role.  Judges and justices are servants of the law, not the other way around."
      — Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts, Jr.

Candidates must meet the following criteria:

• Actively holds a judicial office other than sitting chief justice
• Has significant experience serving state courts
• Demonstrates promotion and implementation of innovation in the management of state courts
• Provides leadership at the national and/or state level to improve state systems of justice

The following information must accompany each nomination:

• One nomination letter highlighting no more than five major accomplishments of the nominee
• A brief resume 
• Two letters of reference from individuals who have collaborated closely with the nominee and have direct knowledge of the major accomplishments
• Nomination materials are strictly limited to a total count of 10 pages

Selection process

The Governance and Nominations Committee of the NCSC Board of Directors serves as the selection committee for this award, with the advice and consent of the Chief Justice of the United States. 

Nominations 

Nominations for the 2026 award have closed. 

Award recipients

2025: Judge Stephen Dillard (Georgia)

See the complete list of award recipients.

The Warren E. Burger Award honors the late Chief Justice of the United States, who was instrumental in founding NCSC and its Institute for Court Management. Chief Justice Burger was a staunch supporter of improving judicial administration through leadership and service to state courts.

The Burger Award recognizes an individual, other than a sitting judge, whose service, over a career or substantial period of time, has significantly contributed to improving the administration of the state court. 

Award recipients

2025: Michael Buenger

See the complete list of award recipients.

The Sandra Day O'Connor Award for the Advancement of Civics Education is named after the late Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court and first woman to serve on the nation's highest court. When Justice O'Connor retired from the Supreme Court in 2006, she became a tireless advocate for improving civics education. Among her accomplishments was founding iCivics, a program that uses web-based educational tools to teach civics education and inspire students to participate actively in our democracy.

This award honors an organization, court, or individual(s) who have promoted, inspired, improved, or led an innovation or accomplishment in civics education related to the justice system.

Nominating process

This award is presented annually. Candidates must be nominated by a member of the Conference of Chief Justices, Conference of State Court Administrators, or NCSC Board of Directors. Nominations should include a nomination letter that demonstrates how the candidate/s has met the criteria described below:

• Leadership and commitment: the number of years devoted to civics education, whether the efforts have been personal (e.g., going into the field, classrooms, civic groups) and/or strong advocacy work, such as making speeches and providing endorsements; and
• Programmatic details: what has been the impact and scope of the nominee's efforts, what is the nature/variety/duration of the programmatic efforts, and have any of the programmatic activities prompted innovation.

A committee of NCSC's Board of Directors serves as the selection committee for this award.  When conferred, the award is presented at a time and location mutually agreeable to the recipient and NCSC.

Award recipients

2026: Arizona Bar Foundation

See the complete list of award recipients.

This award is named after Chief Justice Harry L. Carrico, who served as a justice on the Virginia Supreme Court for 42 years and as Chief Justice of the Commonwealth of Virginia for 22 years until his retirement in 2003.

Chief Justice Carrico participated in the founding of NCSC in Williamsburg, Va., in 1971 and ground-breaking for NCSC's headquarters in Williamsburg in 1976. He also served on the NCSC Board of Directors from 1987 to 1990 and chaired the board from 1989 to 1990.

Created by the NCSC Board of Directors, this award honors a sitting state chief justice, or a sitting justice who has served as a chief justice within one year preceding selection, who has inspired, sponsored, promoted, or led an innovation or accomplishment of national significance in the field of judicial administration.

Nominating process

This award is conferred only when a special innovation or accomplishment of national significance in the field of judicial administration has been made. NCSC's president will identify eligible and suitable candidates for the award and periodically present nominations to a committee of NCSC's Board of Directors.

The selection committee

The Governance and Nominations Committee of the NCSC Board of Directors serves as the selection committee for this award. When conferred, the award is presented at a time and location mutually agreeable to the recipient and NCSC.

Award recipients

2020 - Nathan Hecht (Texas)

See the complete list of award recipients.

The award is named for G. Thomas Munsterman, founder and former director of the Center for Jury Studies and an internationally renowned innovator in jury systems and research.

Nominating process

Presented annually since 2008, the award recognizes states, local courts, individuals, or other organizations that have made significant improvements or innovations in jury procedures, operations, or practices in one of the following categories:

• state or local statutes, rules, or other formal changes
• jury management or technology
• in-court improvements
• other improvements or innovations

Award recipients

2025: Paula Hannaford-Agor

See the complete list of award recipients.

Established in 1996 in recognition of NCSC's 25th anniversary, the Warren E. Burger Society honors individuals who have demonstrated an exemplary commitment to improving the administration of justice through extraordinary contributions of their time, talent, and support to the National Center for State Courts.

2025 Inductees:

Matthew Benefiel. Benefiel has served as the trial court administrator for the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida for nearly 30 years. He is a past member of NCSC's Board of Directors and has been involved in a number of national court organizations. 

Stacey Marz. Marz has served as the administrative director of the Alaska Court System since 2019. She is a member of the Conference of State Court Administrators Board of Directors and a contributor to several national court AI initiatives. Marz is a fellow of NCSC's Institute for Court Management and sits on its board of advisors.

Thomas W. Ross. Ross is a retired North Carolina superior court judge who also served as the director of the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts. Following his court service, Ross was president of the 17-campus University of North Carolina system and Davidson College. Ross is a past member of NCSC's Board of Directors and co-chairs its leadership council. 

Indiana Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush. Chief Justice Rush was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court in 2012 and became the state's first female chief justice in 2014. She is a past president of the Conference of Chief Justices and past chair of NCSC's Board of Directors. Chief Justice Rush has provided leadership to the National Judicial Opioid Task Force and National Judicial Task Force to Examine State Courts' Response to Mental Illness. 

Member listing

See the complete list of Warren E. Burger Society members.