Joseph Lambert

Biography Born in Berea, Kentucky, Lambert received a Bachelor of Science degree from Georgetown College in 1970, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. From 1970 to 1971, he was a staffer to Senator John Sherman Cooper. He received a Juris Doctor from the University of Louisville School of Law in 1974, and thereafter served as a law clerk for Rhodes Bratcher of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky in Louisville. Lambert entered private practice in Mount Vernon, Kentucky in 1975.

Lambert was first elected to the Kentucky Supreme Court in November 1986, representing Kentucky's 3rd Supreme Court district, and was sworn into office on January 5, 1987. On October 5, 1998, he became chief justice. He served on the court until 2008.

His ex-wife, Debra H. Lambert, has served as a member of the Kentucky Supreme Court since 2019, and as chief justice since 2025.