Teri Corsones Wins Robert B. Yegge Award for Outstanding Contribution in the Field of Judicial Administration at ABA Annual Meeting

Vermont State Court Administrator Therese "Teri" Corsones was honored on Aug. 1 at the 2026 ABA Annual Conference in Chicago with the Robert B. Yegge Award for Outstanding Contribution in the Field of Judicial Administration.

The Award honors the former Dean Emeritus of the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and former Chair of the Lawyers Conference of the ABA. Yegge distinguished himself with outstanding achievements in the area of judicial administration and also as a leader in scholarly and civic arenas. The Award has been given each year since 2009 to a current or former member of the American Bar Association who best emulates Dean Yegge's contributions to the field of judicial administration.

Teri was on hand in Chicago to receive the award. She spoke to those assembled about accomplishments of the Vermont Judiciary and the Vermont bar, including highlights of the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence celebrations held recently at many different courthouses state-wide as one example of bench and bar collaboration in the area of civics education. Teri was co-chair with Vermont Supreme Court Justice Nancy Waples of the VT Judiciary 250th Anniversary Declaration of Independence Committee. She gave credit to the Vermont Judiciary and to the Vermont bar for opportunities that made receipt of the award possible: "I've been very lucky over the years to get to work with amazingly dedicated judges, lawyers and court personnel in both the public and private sector. I've seen first-hand how hard they all work together to strive for justice in our court system. It's an honor to accept this award on their behalf."

Teri is a well-known figure in Vermont legal circles. The Vermont Supreme Court appointed her to the State Court Administrator post in 2022. Just prior to her appointment, she served as Executive Director of the Vermont Bar Association. After graduating from Cornell Law School in 1982, Teri worked in private practice in Vermont for 25 years before serving as Superior Court Clerk after the re-structuring of the Vermont Superior Court in 2010. During her career in the private and public sectors, Teri also served as President of the Vermont Bar Association, President of the Vermont Bar Foundation, Chair of the Vermont Human Rights Commission, Chair of the Mendon Planning Commission, Chair of the Diocesan Review Board and Member of the Vermont Access to Justice Coalition. This is a partial list of her activities. She is married to Superior Court Judge Cort Corsones. They have three children and seven grandchildren.

Teri was nominated for the award by Stackpole & French attorney Alexander Cyr. Alex represents Vermont as the State Delegate to the American Bar Association (ABA) House of Delegates and serves as an at-large member of the Vermont Bar Association (VBA) Young Lawyers Division Executive Board. He was present in Chicago along with other members of the Vermont Delegation, including former VBA President and ABA Delegate Elizabeth Kruska, for the award presentation.