[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 43 (Thursday, March 15, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S1730]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          TRIBUTE TO INDIANA CHIEF JUSTICE RANDALL T. SHEPARD

  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I wish to recognize Indiana Chief Justice 
Randall T. Shepard, who is retiring this month after 25 years of 
distinguished service as Indiana's Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
  Justice Shepard was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court by 
Governor Robert Orr in 1985 and became Chief Justice in 1987, then the 
youngest chief justice in the nation. During his career, he has 
authored nearly 900 civil and criminal opinions and 68 law review 
articles. His writings have been cited hundreds of times by law 
journals and other courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
  Justice Shepard's leadership and idealism are recognized beyond his 
legal opinions. Under his tenure, the court adopted a more balanced 
workload of civil and criminal cases and began webcasting all of its 
oral arguments. In 2001, he created the Courts in the Classroom 
program, which helps students learn about the judiciary, and was a 
driving force behind the Indiana Conference for Legal Education 
Opportunity program which promotes diversity in the legal profession. 
In 2007, Justice Shepard was appointed by Governor Mitch Daniels as co-
chair of the Indiana Commission on Local Government Reform, and several 
of the Commission's recommendations have been implemented.
  A seventh-generation Hoosier, Justice Shepard grew up in Evansville, 
IN, and graduated cum laude from Princeton in 1969. He received his law 
degree from Yale Law School in 1972. Among other awards, Justice 
Shepard has received the Indiana Chamber of Commerce Government Leader 
of the Year, the American Judicature Society's Opperman Award, and the 
Indiana Black Expo Lifetime Achievement Award. He has honorary degrees 
from the University of Southern Indiana, the University of South 
Carolina, the University of Notre Dame, and the University of 
Evansville.
  I appreciate this opportunity to recognize Justice Shepard, and I 
wish him every continuing success as he pursues new challenges and 
opportunities.

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