Committee on Character Education (1999) and the Florida Bar's Commission on the Legal Needs of Children (2000–2002). In March 2003, Pariente was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a radical double mastectomy and a full course of chemotherapy. During her treatment, she was noted for never missing an oral argument or judicial conference. Her decision after treatment to sit on the bench without wearing a wig during televised court proceedings was widely hailed as a breakthrough for other women in treatment. Pariente was the author of the 2004 decision in Jeb Bush v. Michael Schiavo, which ruled unconstitutional a law passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature authorizing Governor Jeb Bush to intervene in the Terri Schiavo case. In January 2006, Pariente authored a decision in Jeb Bush v. Ruth Holmes, ruling Florida's Opportunity Scholarship Program offering children in failing public schools their choice of an alternative school including a private or parochial school unconstitutional. As a result, some Republican legislators pledged to campaign against Pariente in November, when she faced a routine merit retention vote. While no organized campaign against Pariente's retention resulted, no Florida judge has ever been removed from office as a result of organized campaigns. In the 2006 general election, Pariente won retention by receiving 67.6% of the vote. She won retention again in 2012 by a similar margin, despite organized opposition from several groups and the state Republican Party. Awards and honors Pariente is Jewish and has received the Palm Beach County Jewish Federation's Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998 and the Jewish Museum's "Breaking the Glass Ceiling" award in 2002. Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award (George Washington University, 2006) On March 11, 2008, Florida Governor Charlie Crist inducted Justice Pariente into the Florida Women's Hall of Fame. See also List of female state supreme court justices References External links Florida Supreme Court page on Barbara Pariente Palm Beach Post photo essay on Pariente's cancer treatment 1948 births Living people Lawyers from New York City People from Tenafly, New Jersey Tenafly High School alumni Boston University College of Communication alumni Justices of the Florida Supreme Court George Washington University Law School alumni Women in Florida politics Judges of the Florida District Courts of Appeal Women chief justices of state supreme courts in the United States 20th-century American judges 21st-century American judges Chief Justices of the Florida Supreme Court 20th-century American women judges 21st-century American women judges