William W. Potter (Michigan politician)

William W. Potter (1869 – 1940) was an American politician and jurist from the state of Michigan. He served as a Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court from 1928 to 1940.

Born in Hastings, Michigan, Potter graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1895. He practiced law in Hastings before entering politics.

Potter served as a Republican member of the Michigan House of Representatives from 1909 to 1910 and the Michigan State Senate from 1911 to 1912. He was later appointed as a circuit court judge in 1916, a position he held until his appointment to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor Fred W. Green in 1928 to fill a vacancy caused by the death of Justice Grant Fellows. He was subsequently elected to the court for a full term in 1929 and re-elected in 1937.

Justice Potter was known for his conservative legal philosophy. He died in office in Lansing, Michigan, in 1940.