Gordon MacDonald, the chief justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court, resigned on Tuesday after a panel found he violated the state’s ethics code. He has been on unexplained medical leave since July.
MacDonald exercised favoritism and bypassed merit-based hiring practices, according to a Supreme Court order, by giving a longtime ally, Dianne Martin, a new role in an unconventional way.
Martin, who in recent years held the top administrative job at the New Hampshire Judicial Branch, was laid off from state government last spring. She was rehired two days later as general counsel, but the short gap enabled a $50,000 payout of unused sick and vacation time from her prior role, as first reported by NHPR.
The Judicial Conduct Committee, which oversees judges’ behavior, wrote MacDonald “failed to act in a manner that promotes public confidence in the impartiality of the judiciary and failed to avoid the appearance of impropriety.”
The panel elevated it to an official complaint in March, then published its findings on Tuesday.
MacDonald acknowledged the violations, did not contest them and agreed to resign as part of a settlement, according to the Judicial Conduct Committee, meaning a formal hearing will not be pursued.
“I believe this is in the best interests of the New Hampshire Judicial Branch,” MacDonald wrote in his resignation letter. “I accept responsibility and accountability for my conduct. It has been an honor to serve the people of New Hampshire.”
Gov. Kelly Ayotte said she received his resignation but did not comment further.
Martin is still listed online as a state employee.
The Judicial Conduct Committee cannot remove a judge from office. In New Hampshire, judges can only be removed through legislative impeachment or by joint action of the executive and legislative branches.
The timeline
MacDonald first met Martin in 2017 when he was appointed Attorney General of New Hampshire by former Governor Chris Sununu. At that time, Martin worked as an attorney in the Department of Justice, specializing in transportation and construction matters.
In 2019, MacDonald promoted Martin to chief of staff, which came with a salary bump of nearly $25,000.
In March 2021, MacDonald was sworn in as a New Hampshire Supreme Court Justice. Eight months later, in November 2021, Martin was hired as Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts, the court system’s top administrative position.
Martin was laid off on April 1, 2025, for her “management style,” reports show. Three days later, on April 4, 2025, she was rehired to a different position within the judicial branch.
In a letter to MacDonald in March 2026, the Judicial Conduct Committee accused him of being upset with other justices’ decision to remove Martin from her position.
“You entered Justice Donovan’s chambers, reportedly slamming the office door. It is also reported that you yelled at Justice Donovan, using profane language in anger. Later that day you engaged in a similar behavior in a heated exchange with Justice Countway,” the letter states. “This was not the first time in your tenure that you yelled and used profanity in anger toward a judicial officer.”
According to records released Tuesday, when Martin was offered the new position within the court system, she initially declined it.
Then she decided to negotiate. She drafted a ten-point proposal and sent it to MacDonald in an email, laying out her terms for accepting the role.
One of her demands was that she would report directly to MacDonald.
In the proposal, Martin wrote to MacDonald: “You will provide a positive recommendation along the same lines as your email, in recognition of my significant work and contributions to the branch, noting the layoff due to administrative reorganization. This will allow me to mitigate the impacts of what happened in the future.”
MacDonald had been on medical leave since July 24, and the associate justices had taken on his administrative workload at that time.
“The Judicial Branch remains focused on carrying out its responsibilities to the public and ensuring that the work of the courts continues without interruption,” David Sakowich, spokesperson for the New Hampshire Judicial Branch, said in a statement.
This story has been updated to include more information.
