Patricia J. Gorence

Professional career

• Patricia J. Gorence was a distinguished federal judge and the first woman to serve as a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, later also serving in the Western District of Wisconsin.

Judicial service

• Magistrate, District Court, W.D. Wisconsin, 1994-present
• Patricia J. Gorence passed away on August 4, 2025, at age 82. Colleagues remembered her as a trailblazer, quiet, competent, and caring judge who “did her work and went about it respectfully”. She was active in the Milwaukee Bar Association, the Association for Women Lawyers, and numerous community service initiatives.
• Gorence was appointed in 1994 to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin on a renewable eight‑year term. She had previously been appointed in 1991 to the Eastern District of Wisconsin, where she broke ground as the first woman in that role. She served on the federal bench for 26 years, retiring June 30, 2013, but remained on recall status until 2020.
• Founding the “START” reentry program (Successful Transition and Reentry Together) to help previously incarcerated individuals reintegrate into communities.
• Supervising law clerks on civil rights cases and mentoring new judges and staff.
• Before law school, Gorence held a position as a reporter for the Waukesha Freeman and for the Southern Courier in Montgomery, Alabama, during the Civil Rights Movement, reporting on politics, protests, and the lived experiences of sharecroppers. This experience shaped her commitment to equity and justice.

Education

• Marquette University Law School · J.D.

Personal record

Sheboygan, Wisconsin