Megan Kathleen CavanaghIncumbent
Candidate for Justice, Michigan Supreme Court
Megan Cavanagh studied engineering at the University of Michigan and earned her law degree at Wayne State University Law School. She spent more than fifteen years as an appellate attorney and was a shareholder at Garan Lucow Miller in Detroit. She joined the Michigan Supreme Court in January 2019 after her 2018 election and was selected as chief justice by her colleagues in 2025. Michigan Lawyers Weekly named her Lawyer of the Year in 2006 and a Woman in the Law in 2017. She was nominated by the Democratic Party.
Notable cases
- People v. Jennings (2026)
A man's first trial ended in a mistrial. The prosecutor had told the jury that ending a police interview showed a guilty conscience. The man said a second trial was barred by the ban on double jeopardy. The question was when a prosecutor's misconduct bars a new trial.
The court said the federal test does not fit the state constitution. That test bars a new trial only if the prosecutor meant to force a mistrial. The court adopted a different test. It asks whether the prosecutor knew the conduct was improper and did it for an improper purpose. The court sent the case back to the trial court to apply the new test.
- People v. Armogeda (2026)
A man was sentenced to prison. Later, two scores used to set his sentencing range were found to be wrong. The corrected range was lower, and his sentence was above it. The trial judge said the same sentence would be given anyway. The question was whether he gets a new sentencing hearing.
He gets a new sentencing hearing. The judge must fix the scores and look at the sentence again. The judge may give the same sentence if it is reasonable and proportionate. If it is outside the range, the judge must give reasons.
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