Barbara Lenk

Barbara A. Lenk (December 2, 1950 – May 19, 2026) was an American attorney and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. On April 4, 2011, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick nominated her to that position and she was confirmed by the Governor's Council on May 4, 2011. She took the oath of office on June 8, 2011.

Early life and education Justice Lenk was born in Queens, New York, on December 2, 1950. Her parents were a bookbinder and a housekeeper. Her first language was Polish. Her practice focused on civil litigation, with a specialty in First Amendment issues. When nominated to serve on the Supreme Judicial Court, Justice Lenk was the longest serving member of the Appeals Court.

Legal Challenge to Pledge of Allegiance

In May 2014, the Supreme Judicial Court unanimously rejected a legal challenge to a Massachusetts law requiring the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in schools. The court ruled that the inclusion of the words "under God" did not violate the rights of atheists because, in the court's view, reciting the pledge "is a fundamentally patriotic exercise, not a religious one."

In a separate concurring opinion, Lenk explained that she agreed with the outcome of the court's decision because the plaintiffs challenging the state law "did not successfully allege that their children receive negative treatment" as a result of their decision not to recite the words "under God," or that their children had been reduced to "second-class citizen[]" status because of their beliefs. In July 2017, Lenk reported to the court the case in which it unanimously held that the commonwealth's law enforcement could not hold a prisoner solely on the authority of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer.

Retirement Lenk announced her retirement from the court, initially effective August 17, 2020, but she later delayed her retirement to December 1, 2020, one day before she turned 70. During Lenk's last week sitting for oral arguments, fellow Justice Frank Gaziano praised her for her "intellectual honesty" and for being "faithful to the law," saying that "Justice Lenk's contributions are impactful and will be long remembered."

Personal life and death Lenk served on the board of directors of the Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association, as chair of the Board of Editors of the Boston Bar Journal, and as a member of the Judicial Administration Council of the Massachusetts Bar Association. where she chaired the academic affairs committee, Lenk served on the board of directors for Kerem Shalom in Concord, Massachusetts. She was the first openly gay member of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

Lenk died on May 19, 2026, at the age of 75.