A state court of last resort / Established 1860

Iowa Supreme Court

Des Moines · A court of last resort in Iowa.

The Iowa Supreme Court is the highest court in Iowa. Its justices are chosen by gubernatorial appointment from a nominating commission, followed by retention elections. This page lists every justice to serve on the court, current and former, with when they joined the bench and whom they succeeded.

Justices in history

Currently serving

Merit selection

Selection

8-yr

Term

Current justices

Justice	Since
Mark S. Cady	1998
David Wiggins	2003
Brent R. Appel	2006
Daryl L. Hecht	2006
Edward M. Mansfield	2011
Thomas D. Waterman	2011
Bruce B. Zager	2011

Former justices

Justice	Years
David L. Baker	2008–2010
Michael J. Streit	2001–2010
Marsha K. Ternus	1993–2010
James H. Andreasen	1987–1998
Louis A. Lavorato	1986–2006
Linda K. Neuman	1986–2003
Charles Robert Wolle	1983–1987
James Harvey Carter	1982–2006
Louis W. Schultz	1980–1993
Robert G. Allbee	1978–1982
Jerry L. Larson	1978–2013
Arthur A. McGiverin	1978–2000
K David Harris	1972–1999
Mark McCormick	1972–1986
W. Ward Reynoldson	1971–1987
Harvey Uhlenhopp	1970–1986
Warren J. Rees	1969–1980
Clay LeGrand	1967–1983
Francis H. Becker	1965–1972
M.L. Mason	1965–1978
Maurice E. Rawlings	1965–1978
C Edwin Moore	1962–1978
William Corwin Stuart	1962–1971
Bruce M. Snell	1961–2001
T Eugene Thornton	1959–1967
Harry G. Garrett	1958–1960
Luke E. Linnan	1958–1958
Henry K - changed from F Peterson	1955–1965
Robert L. Larson	1953–1971
G King Thompson	1951–1965
Norman R. Hays	1946–1965
Halleck J. Mantz	1943–1953
John E. Mulroney	1943–1955
William A. Smith	1943–1958
Theodore G. Garfield	1941–1969
Charles F. Wennerstrum	1941–1958
William L. Bliss	1939–1962
Oscar Hale	1939–1950
Frederick M. Miller	1939–1946
Ralph A. Oliver	1938–1962
Edward A. Sager	1937–1942
Carl B. Stiger	1936–1942
Wilson H. Hamilton	1935–1940
James M. Parsons	1935–1937
Paul W. Richards	1935–1940
Leon W. Powers	1934–1936
John W. Anderson	1933–1938
Maurice F. Donegan	1933–1938
John W. kintzinger	1933–1938
George C. Chaussen	1932–1934
Richard F. Mitchell	1932–1942
Hubert Utterback	1932–1933
John M. Grimm	1929–1932
James W. Kindig	1927–1934
Henry F. Wagner	1927–1932
Elma G. Albert	1925–1936
Edgar A. Morling	1925–1932
Charles W. Vermilion	1923–1927
Lawrence De Graff	1921–1932
Frederick F. Faville	1921–1932
Thomas Arthur	1920–1925
Truman S. Stevens	1917–1934
Benjamin I. Salinger	1915–1920
Frank R. Gaynor	1913–1920
Byron W. Preston	1913–1924
William D. Evans	1908–1934
Charles A. Bishop	1902–1908
Silas M. Weaver	1902–1923
John C. Sherwin	1900–1912
Horace E. Deemer	1894–1917
Josiah Given	1889–1901
Austin Adams	1876–1887
William H. Seevers	1876–1888
Joseph M. Beck	1868–1891
Chester C. Cole	1864–1876
John Forrest Dillon	1864–1869
Caleb Baldwin	1860–1863

How a justice reaches this court. Justices of the Iowa Supreme Court are appointed by the governor to 8-year terms and then face yes-or-no retention elections. The State Judicial Nominating Commission sends nominees to the governor, who appoints; justices then face yes-or-no retention elections for eight-year terms. Selection methods vary by jurisdiction and have changed over time; this page reflects the court’s current method (source: National Center for State Courts). Open any justice to see their tenure and whom they succeeded.

Source: CourtListener / Free Law Project; selection method from the National Center for State Courts. Data last verified 2026-06-30. Verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).