[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 88 (Friday, June 22, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S6661]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       IN MEMORY OF CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT JUSTICE STANLEY MOSK

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, today I reflect on the career of 
one of the most respected and influential members of the California 
Supreme Court, Justice Stanley Mosk.
  Before his death at the age of 88, on June 19, 2001 at his home in 
San Francisco, Justice Mosk was the longest-serving member in the 
Court's 151-year history. He leaves an exceptional legacy that will be 
felt for many years in California and beyond. Among his many 
contributions he continuously worked, from the beginning of his career 
to the very end, to protect the civil rights and liberties of 
Californians and all Americans. He will be remembered for his 
integrity, his intellect and for his unwavering commitment to assuring 
that our courts and laws are based on the principles of justice and 
equality for all.
  Stanley Mosk was appointed to the California Supreme Court by 
Governor Edmund G. ``Pat'' Brown on August 8, 1964. He served on the 
Court for nearly 37 years.
  He began his career in the law during the Depression. Not many years 
after graduating from law school he rose to become executive secretary 
and legal advisor to California Governor Culbert Olson. He was 
appointed to the State Superior Court bench in 1942. At the time of his 
appointment, he was 31 years old, the State's youngest Superior Court 
judge. He served on the Superior Court bench for some 16 years, a 
tenure interrupted only by military service during World War II. He 
went on to win statewide election as California Attorney General, a 
position in which he served for 6 years, and was the first practicing 
Jew to be elected to that office. As attorney general, he fought for 
civil rights reforms and to strengthen antitrust laws.
  During his tenure on the Supreme Court, Justice Mosk wrote over 1,600 
opinions many of which of which had a profound influence on California 
law, and were later echoed in opinions of other States' courts and the 
U.S. Supreme Court. He was often a man ahead of his time. As one 
example, in 1978 he wrote an opinion which outlawed racial 
discrimination in jury selection. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the 
same principle 8 years later. Justice Mosk also worked to promote the 
State constitution as an independent document, guaranteeing essential 
rights, distinct from the U.S. Constitution. Many States followed his 
lead.
  To quote current California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald 
George, ``Stanley Mosk was a giant in the law.'' Although he is no 
longer with us, his passion for justice will live through his rulings 
for years to come.

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