Judge to become new state insurance commissioner

Governor Deval L. Patrick appointed a Superior Court judge with no professional background in insurance as the state's top insurance regulator.

Nonnie S. Burnes, 64, a former law partner of Patrick's, will give up her court robes Feb. 26, but as the new insurance commissioner she will still issue plenty of rulings, setting auto insurance rates for the state's 4 million drivers and regulating industry disputes over health and worker's compensation insurance.

The appointment sent insurance industry officials scrambling for information about the judge. Before being appointed to the bench in 1996 by former Governor William F. Weld, Burnes was a partner at Hill & Barlow, the same law firm that Patrick worked at until 1994.

James Harrington, president of the Massachusetts Insurance Federation, called Burnes an "interesting" appointment. "It's reflective of the Patrick Administration recognizing the commissioner of insurance is a significant post with a whole host of responsibilities," he said.

(By Bruce Mohl, Globe staff)