Barbara Milano Keenan

Barbara Milano Keenan received her bachelor's degree from Cornell University and her law degree from George Washington University. From 1974 to 1976 she was an assistant commonwealth's attorney for Fairfax County, Virginia before entering private practice. In 1980, she was made a judge of the General District Court of Fairfax County, and two years later became the first woman to be elected to a Circuit Court judgeship by the Virginia General Assembly. In 1985, she was elected as one of the first ten judges of the newly created Court of Appeals of Virginia, making her the first woman to serve as a state appellate court judge in Virginia. In 1991, she was elected to be a Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, succeeding Justice Charles S. Russell. Justice Keenan was reelected in 2003 to a second twelve-year term on the Court.

Justice Keenan holds the distinction, along with Justice Lawrence L. Koontz, Jr., of having served at every level of Virginia's judicial system. Justice Designate Lero F. Millette, Jr., who is expected to take office on September 5, 2008, will be the third such jurist to have served at every level.