New Hampshire’s top judge is out, and he’s taking an ethics confession with him on the way out the door.
On Tuesday, Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s office released a one-paragraph resignation letter from Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald, effective immediately. The letter says, “I believe this is in the best interests of the New Hampshire Judicial Branch. I accept responsibility and accountability for my conduct.”
“Responsibility for my conduct” is the real key here, because at the same moment, the New Hampshire Supreme Court put out an order saying MacDonald had admitted to violating three sections of the state’s Code of Judicial Conduct. So this is more like a plea deal with fancier letterhead.
The probe was about a personnel move from last year that makes more sense as a balancesheet trick than as HR. Dianne Martin, a top judicial branch employee who was MacDonald’s chief of staff back when he was state attorney general, was laid off on April 1, 2025. She was hired back into a different job on April 4. And that three-day gap let her cash out nearly $50,000 in unused vacation, sick time, and other accrued benefits.
It’s hard to call it a layoff when it’s shorter than most people’s vacations.
After NHPR reported the story in October 2025, the court put out a statement defending the payout. Then the state’s Judicial Conduct Committee (“JCC”), an independent panel of judges and lawyers, opened an inquiry. It found that MacDonald failed to “promote public confidence” in the judiciary, failed to do his job competently, and failed “to avoid favoritism with respect to the removal of Dianne Martin.” According to InDepthNH, MacDonald also went around the judicial branch’s usual merit-based hiring process to get Martin the new job.
MacDonald could have fought the charges at a public trial but chose instead to leave the bench. Because he resigned, the committee can’t impose any further discipline. In a separate statement, he said he was resigning “to maintain the integrity of the judicial branch and to avoid the protracted and disruptive spectacle a public hearing would cause.” MacDonald did agree to pay the legal fees of the committee’s counsel, which… is the closest thing to a penalty in this whole story.
Justice Patrick Donovan, the court’s most senior justice, is serving as acting chief for now. Ayotte will get to nominate a replacement, subject to Executive Council approval, which would make it her third pick for the state’s high court. The court goes back to oral arguments on September 22, a little lighter and, the JCC hopes, a little more trustworthy.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Bluesky @Kathryn1
The post New Hampshire Chief Justice Resigns After Admitting Ethics Violations Over $50,000 Payout To Longtime Ally appeared first on Above the Law.
New Hampshire’s top judge is out, and he’s taking an ethics confession with him on the way out the door.
On Tuesday, Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s office released a one-paragraph resignation letter from Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald, effective immediately. The letter says, “I believe this is in the best interests of the New Hampshire Judicial Branch. I accept responsibility and accountability for my conduct.”
“Responsibility for my conduct” is the real key here, because at the same moment, the New Hampshire Supreme Court put out an order saying MacDonald had admitted to violating three sections of the state’s Code of Judicial Conduct. So this is more like a plea deal with fancier letterhead.
The probe was about a personnel move from last year that makes more sense as a balancesheet trick than as HR. Dianne Martin, a top judicial branch employee who was MacDonald’s chief of staff back when he was state attorney general, was laid off on April 1, 2025. She was hired back into a different job on April 4. And that three-day gap let her cash out nearly $50,000 in unused vacation, sick time, and other accrued benefits.
It’s hard to call it a layoff when it’s shorter than most people’s vacations.
After NHPR reported the story in October 2025, the court put out a statement defending the payout. Then the state’s Judicial Conduct Committee (“JCC”), an independent panel of judges and lawyers, opened an inquiry. It found that MacDonald failed to “promote public confidence” in the judiciary, failed to do his job competently, and failed “to avoid favoritism with respect to the removal of Dianne Martin.” According to InDepthNH, MacDonald also went around the judicial branch’s usual merit-based hiring process to get Martin the new job.
MacDonald could have fought the charges at a public trial but chose instead to leave the bench. Because he resigned, the committee can’t impose any further discipline. In a separate statement, he said he was resigning “to maintain the integrity of the judicial branch and to avoid the protracted and disruptive spectacle a public hearing would cause.” MacDonald did agree to pay the legal fees of the committee’s counsel, which… is the closest thing to a penalty in this whole story.
Justice Patrick Donovan, the court’s most senior justice, is serving as acting chief for now. Ayotte will get to nominate a replacement, subject to Executive Council approval, which would make it her third pick for the state’s high court. The court goes back to oral arguments on September 22, a little lighter and, the JCC hopes, a little more trustworthy.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Bluesky @Kathryn1
The post New Hampshire Chief Justice Resigns After Admitting Ethics Violations Over $50,000 Payout To Longtime Ally appeared first on Above the Law.
