Shawn Ellen LaGrua

ATLANTA – Gov. Brian Kemp announced Tuesday he plans to appoint Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shawn Ellen LaGrua to the Georgia Supreme Court.

LaGrua will succeed former Justice Keith R. Blackwell, who left the bench last month to join his former law firm.

Before serving as a Superior Court judge in Fulton County, LaGrua was the inspector general for the Georgia Secretary of State’s office. She also served as DeKalb County’s solicitor general and worked as a prosecutor in the Atlanta, Stone Mountain, and Tallapoosa judicial circuits.

“Judge LaGrua has spent a 30-year career serving her fellow Georgians,” Kemp said. “I am confident that she will bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the bench.”

“We are delighted that Governor Kemp has chosen Shawn LaGrua to join our court,” Georgia Chief Justice Harold Melton added. “She is an excellent choice among a number of excellent choices the governor had available to him.”

Blackwell stepped down from the state Supreme Court after eight years to become senior counsel for Atlanta-based Alston & Bird LLP’s Litigation and Trial Practice Group.