(Source: MIRS.news, Published 12/30/2024) Justice David Viviano's time on the Michigan Supreme Court is winding down to an end as the Justice plans on transitioning back into the private sector.

Former Gov. Rick Snyder appointed Viviano to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2013, where he said he "very much has taken that role seriously and grappled with hard legal questions and tried to come to the right results in every case."

He said throughout his tenure, he has written over 100 opinions and statements, from substantive legal cases to administrative matters.

He believes it's important for a healthy democracy to have "lots of good people with character and integrity who are willing to step up and run for office." 

"I think it's gotten harder and harder for people to do that for various reasons, but our system really depends on people being willing to step forward and run," he said. 

After graduating from law school, Viviano worked in private practice in two firms in Detroit and a national firm in Chicago. He then moved back to Michigan to open his own firm in Macomb County. He then became the Chief Judge of the Macomb County Circuit and Probate Courts. 

He said "after COVID, the direction of the court's administration changed dramatically," transitioning to court closures and virtual courtrooms. 

"It's something that I think had very negative consequences and has been very harmful to the administration of justice, and so I've opposed it publicly," Viviano said.

He said the court was also becoming "much more intensely political," and "once the court started taking positions on political issues and really spending a lot of its time there, I wasn't comfortable in that role anymore."

 In 1992, his father ran a campaign where the entire family was heavily involved. "I think it awakened in me an interest in public service," Viviano said. His family has a long history of public service: his sister ran for judge, and his mother ran for county commissioner.

After retiring, Viviano plans on working in the mediation and private dispute resolution business at a firm with his brother. He said he never thought of himself as a lifetime government official and always expected to eventually return to the private sector.

"With that public service, there comes a sacrifice, and I've willingly and proudly made that sacrifice with our family," Viviano said. He said it is time for him to make money to support his family. 

Viviano said he also has become frustrated with the court and its decision-making, "both on legal matters and administrative matters."

"When you stop feeling like you know you're making a positive impact on things, I think it's time to move on and look for other ways where you can make that impact, and that's sort of what my outlook is moving forward," he said.