[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 117 (Thursday, August 2, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S5972]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 TRIBUTE TO JUDGE HOWARD A. DAWSON, JR.

 Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, today I wish to pay tribute to 
Howard A. Dawson, Jr., a native son of the State of Arkansas, and his 
lifetime of exemplary service to our Nation.
  On August 21, 2012, Judge Dawson will celebrate the 50th anniversary 
of his appointment to the U.S. Tax Court. He is the longest serving 
judge in the history of the court, and one of only four Federal judges 
appointed by President Kennedy who continue to serve on the bench 
today. His longevity is remarkable, but his achievements are even more 
so.
  Judge Dawson hails from Okolona, AR, and comes from a long line of 
educators--parents, uncles, and grandparents--who made their mark in 
Arkansas as teachers, school superintendents, and State Education 
Department officials.
  Judge Dawson's earliest Federal service had some ups and downs. 
Senator Hattie Caraway--the first woman Senator from Arkansas and the 
first woman in the country elected to serve a full term as a Senator--
facilitated his appointment as an elevator operator in what is now the 
Russell Senate Office Building. Since then, however, Judge Dawson's 
career has been ``all ups.''
  As a young captain in the U.S. Army in World War II, Judge Dawson 
served in France and Germany. After graduation from law school in 1949 
and a brief stint in private practice, Judge Dawson joined the Internal 
Revenue Service Office of Chief Counsel and held a series of 
increasingly responsible positions, rising to assistant chief counsel, 
administration, at the time of his appointment to the Tax Court bench 
in 1962.
  At the court in the late 1960s, Judge Dawson worked with his mentor, 
fellow Arkansan, and chairman of the powerful House Committee on Ways 
and Means, Congressman Wilbur D. Mills, to help shape legislation that 
reformed the Tax Code and the U.S. Tax Court. Judge Dawson also worked 
to establish the small tax case procedure, which has made the arcane 
world of tax litigation accessible to self-represented taxpayers, and 
he became the first judge in charge of the small tax case division.
  During his five decades of service to the Tax Court, Judge Dawson's 
colleagues have three times chosen him as their chief judge. His work 
ethic is legendary, and he has authored some 1,200 opinions. But his 
contributions go far beyond his legal opinions, for with kindness, 
patience, and humor he has made his mark on the lives and careers of 
many at the court as colleague, mentor, and friend.
  Judge Dawson has been supported in this work by his wife of more than 
66 years, Marianne Dawson. Judge Dawson exemplifies the very best 
qualities of both a jurist and a public servant, and it is with great 
pleasure that I rise to salute him today.

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