The Ninth Judicial Circuit
Historical Society (NJCHS)
preserves and educates about the vibrant legal history of the West,
and about the vital importance of an independent judiciary.
2022
at the NJCHS
The Circuit Spotlight
Western Legal History
STRANGERS IN A STRANGE LAND
Afghanistan, and now Ukraine, make us think of the journeys of those who must take flight from their countries. In this issue, vaunted Ninth Circuit and District Court judges share their experiences of having fled their homelands to come to the United States.
Watch Past Programs!
During WWII, the death of an Italian POW. The longest Army court-martial of the war. Three Black enlisted men convicted of murder. Years later alarming information in previously-classified documents is uncovered leading the Army to set aside the convictions.
A cataclysmic explosion at a munitions loading port during WWII killed 320 enlisted men, 2/3 of them African American. When 50 refused to continue the dangerous work, they were convicted of mutiny and sentenced in ways that would change their lives.
Do politics and diplomacy factor into our definition of war crimes? How are war crimes dealt with currently, compared to the past? The NJCHS and fellow historical societies invite you to hear our esteemed panelists speak on this topic.
The Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society and the Northern District Historical Society will honor the memory of Bill Edlund by presenting this year’s Bill Edlund Award for Professionalism in the Law to John W. Keker, Esq. of Keker, Van Nest & Peters.
Don’t miss this moving and inspiring presentation by Judges Bea, Nguyen, and Benitez, in conversation with Judge Michael Daly Hawkins about having fled their homelands to come to the United States.
Read more about these Judges’ stories, and those of Judges Tashima and Du, in our recent issue of Western Legal History.
Join us for an engaging presentation by lawyer, legal scholar, and historian John S. Caragozian. In 1941, in Edwards v. California, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of California’s anti-Okie law, which, like Washington’s and other states’ laws, made it illegal to knowingly assist a pauper in entering the state.
Join us for a panel discussion featuring the filmmaker, Betsy West, and a discussion about the documentary on groundbreaking civil rights attorney Pauli Murray, a non-binary Black lawyer, activist and poet who influenced both Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Thurgood Marshall.
Where have we been and where are we now? Join our distinguished panel as they discuss what it was like to be the first woman in a particular role in the law. Our panelists also will provide us with their insights into how things have (or have not) changed.
Oral History Spotlight
On September 16, 2022, the NJCHS hosted a conversation between Judges Susan Mollway, Leslie Kobayashi, and Jill Otake about Judge Mollway’s book, The First Fifteen: How Asian American Women Became Federal Judges. The three judges discuss their experiences being among the first fifteen and why representation matters.
Click the link below to watch their conversation.