The chief judge at the Michigan Court of Appeals is retiring after 40 years on the bench.
Michael Talbot got his start in 1978 as a Detroit-area judge appointed by Gov. William Milliken.
After 20 years, he was promoted to the appeals court by Gov. John Engler and won a series of elections.
Talbot said Monday he's stepping down on April 25. Gov. Rick Snyder will get an opportunity to pick a successor.
While serving on the appeals court, Talbot also was credited with cleaning up Detroit's 36th District Court in 2013 and 2014. The court had many problems, from budget overruns to some employees who had little direction.
Talbot lately has been overseeing compensation cases filed by people who were wrongly convicted of crimes.
