New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Jaynee LaVecchia, appointed by former Republican Gov. Christine Todd Whitman and for two decades an associate justice on the court who honed a reputation as a pragmatic, compassionate jurist with a sharp intellect, will be retiring at the end of August.

LaVecchia sent a letter of resignation on Monday. The letter was addressed to New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way, with Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner and Glenn A. Grant, acting director of the Administrative Office of the Courts, and Lisa Fisk, the AOC's judges' benefits aide, copied.