Press Release  Governor Healey Nominates Audrey Murillo to Juvenile Court, Michael Pineault to Superior Court

Boston — Governor Maura T. Healey today nominated Audrey Murillo as Associate Justices of the Massachusetts Juvenile Court and Michael Pineault as Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court. The nominees will now be considered by the Governor’s Council for confirmation. 

“I’m excited to nominate these exceptional attorneys to the Courts,” said Governor Healey. “Audrey Murillo has demonstrated a knowledge of the juvenile system and a commitment to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the children of Massachusetts. Michael Pineault has dedicated his career to public service and upholding the rule of law. We’re grateful for the work of the Governor’s Council as they consider these two nominations.” 

“Audrey and Michael are hardworking, capable, and experienced attorneys,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “They each come recommended with the highest of praise and we’re proud to submit their names for consideration by the Governor’s Council.”   

Audrey Carr Murillo is an accomplished juvenile justice practitioner and defense attorney. She currently is a clinical instructor at Harvard Law School’s Criminal Justice Institute, where she teaches and supervises law students who represent indigent adults and youth in criminal and delinquency proceedings. She was previously the Supervising Attorney for the private juvenile bar in Suffolk County, where she also tried juvenile and adult cases and represented juveniles in delinquency and youthful offender matters. Prior to that, she was of Counsel to Dhar Law, LLP. 

Attorney Murillo is serving her second year as chair of the Massachusetts Bar Association’s Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Section Council and has been a juvenile section council member for the past seven years. She has a B.A. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and a J.D. from the New England School of Law. She lives in Milton with her husband and two children. 

The mission of the Juvenile Court is to protect children from abuse and neglect, to promote opportunities for children to reside in safe, stable, permanent family environments, to strengthen families, to rehabilitate juveniles, and to protect the public from delinquent and criminal behavior. The Juvenile Court Department has jurisdiction over civil and criminal matters including delinquencies, youthful offender cases, care and protection matters and children requiring assistance cases. It has 42 judges, including the Chief Justice, sitting in over 40 courthouses. 

For more information about the Juvenile Court, visit its homepage. 

Michael Pineault is a seasoned litigator and prior public servant, with more than 30 years of experience both defending and prosecuting complex civil cases and white-collar criminal matters. He currently serves as Counsel at Anderson & Kreiger LLP and previously spent more than a decade at Clements & Pineault LLP, where he was a Co-Founder and Partner. Prior to that, he served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney from 1997 to 2007, including in both the Civil Division and as the Chief of the Economic Crimes Unit, and later as Deputy Chief Legal Counsel to Governor Deval Patrick. Pineault began his career serving as a law clerk to the Honorable Hugh H. Bownes of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He has an A.B. from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. He is from Foxborough and lives in Wayland. 

The Superior Court, is a trial court of general jurisdiction for Massachusetts and is committed to delivering high quality justice in a timely and fair manner in accordance with the rule of law. The Court's 82 justices sit in 20 courthouses in all 14 counties. The Superior Court has original jurisdiction in civil actions over $50,000 and in matters where equitable relief is sought. It also has original jurisdiction in actions including labor disputes where injunctive relief is sought, exclusive authority to convene medical malpractice tribunals, appellate jurisdiction over certain administrative proceedings, and may hold sittings for naturalization in any city or town. The Superior Court also has exclusive original jurisdiction of first-degree murder cases and original jurisdiction of all other crimes. 

For more information about the Superior Court, visit its homepage. Earlier this month, Governor Healey nominated Adam L. Sisitsky and Tracy E. Duncan to the Superior Court. 

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