Warren E. Burger Society honors national court leaders

Williamsburg, Va. (Nov. 21, 2025) – Four leaders in the court community have been inducted into the National Center for State Courts' (NCSC) Warren E. Burger Society.

Named for the NCSC visionary and former Chief Justice of the United States, the 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 of NCSC. This year's inductees were celebrated at an event in Washington, D.C., Nov. 20.

The 2025 inductees include:

• 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.