Justice Byron R. White

Justice Byron R. White died last month, two months short of his 85th birthday. He had served 31 years on the Court, taking senior status in 1993. A Rhodes Scholar, a professional footfall player for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Detroit Lions, a Yale Law School graduate, and Deputy U.S. Attorney General from 1961 to 1962 under Robert Kennedy, White’s life and career were celebrated by his friends and colleagues. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist Justice Byron R. White was the 93rd Justice to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated to the Court by President Kennedy on April 3, 1962, and was confirmed eight days later. He was a good colleague and a great friend. He came as close as anyone I have known to meriting Matthew Arnold’s description of Sophocles, "He saw life steadily and saw it whole." All of us who served with him will miss him.

Among other activities after his retirement from the Supreme Court, Justice Byron R. White chaired the Commission on Structural Alternatives for the Federal Courts of Appeals, serving with members (left to right) Judge William D. Browning (D. Ariz.), former ABA President N. Lee Cooper, Judge Pamela Ann Rymer (9th Cir.), and Judge Gilbert S. Merritt (6th Cir.).

Byron White was already a national hero to sports fans when I first met him in Pearl Harbor during World War II. I knew immediately that he was the kind of person that I would want as a friend. One of the great blessings of my appointment to this Court was the fruition of that wish. His friendship is one of the treasures of this tour of duty. He was the kind of person for whom respect, admiration, and affection continue to increase as you learn more about him. He was a true hero during his naval service; a brilliant student and law clerk; an outstanding member of the profession, both in private practice and as a public servant; and a great judge. He was also blessed with an exceptionally loving bride and a fine family of which he was justly proud. I miss him.

Justice White was an extraordinary man. His intellect and contributions as a Justice of the Supreme Court spanned 31 years, and his careful imprint will be felt for a great many more years. He was as skilled in public service as in professional football. The people who reach the top in several fields are few, indeed. Justice White was one of the few and was an American original.

Anyone who ever met Byron White will recall his painfully firm handshake: You had to squeeze back hard or he would hurt you. I always thought that an apt symbol for his role on this Court—he worked hard and well, and by doing so forced you to do the same. If there is one adjective that never could, never would be applied to Byron White, it is wishy-washy. You always knew where he stood; knew that he was not likely to be moved; and hoped that he was lining up on your side of scrimmage. His former colleagues have missed him since his retirement nine years ago; we will miss him more now. May he rest in peace.

The Court must strive in all it is and all it does to reflect the integrity and the strength of a Nation dedicated to the cause of Freedom. Byron White was himself a remarkable personification of these values and this purpose. His physical strength and stature were powerful reminders of an even greater strength of character, character marked even from his youth by an unyielding dedication to America and its historic mission. Byron White honored the Court and the law by his service here. He honored the United States and its people by his splendid, vibrant human spirit.

Justice White was a welcoming colleague and a solid friend. Like the others here, I will miss him.

Associate Justice Clarence Thomas I am deeply saddened to learn of the death of Justice White. He was a great man, an outstanding member of the Court, and a wonderful friend. Virginia and I extend our heartfelt sympathy to Marion and her family. We will keep them in our thoughts and prayers. Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg At the hearings on my nomination in July 1993, a Senator asked, "In what ways do you think you might be like or different from Justice White?" I answered, "The differences are obvious; he is very tall and I am rather small, and I surely do not have his athletic prowess." But "I hope I am like him in dedication to the job and readiness to work hard at it." I hold that hope high to this very day. I have a special fondness for and appreciation of Justice White for another reason. In my days as an advocate of equal rights for men and women, I argued six cases in the Supreme Court and prevailed in five. If it had been up to Justice White, I would have prevailed in all six. He voted for the precise position I advocated every time. He was the only Justice who did. Associate Justice Stephen G. Breyer I was lucky to have come to know Justice White in his later years. Justice White was a great judge and a thoroughly decent man - forceful, engaging and strongly committed to public service.

Administrative Office Director Leonidas Ralph Mecham and Justice Byron White at a Judicial Conference reception at the Supreme Court.

Judge Louis F. Oberdorfer (D.D.C.) and Mr. Herbert J. Miller, Jr., eulogized Justice White at his funeral, April 19, 2002, in Denver, Colorado. The following are excerpts.

Judge Oberdorfer, a Yale Law School classmate, headed DOJ’s Tax Division when White was Deputy Attorney General.

At his confirmation hearing in 1962, White was asked what he thought to be the job of a Supreme Court Justice. He could have uttered platitudes addressed to whatever was the "litmus test" of the time: "I am a strict constructionist," or "I am going to follow the rule of law," or "I am going to be guided by my idol, Justice Holmes." Nominee White simply responded that the Supreme Court’s job is to "decide cases."

And that is what he did for 31 years—thoughtfully, carefully, free of rhetorical flourishes, opinions limited to the facts and the law of each case, yet willing to change his position when experience and reflection bred a different approach. Shortly after his retirement, a colleague regretted the Court’s loss of its "institutional memory." Some are of the view that it lost a balance wheel.

Miller headed the Justice Department’s Criminal Division while Justice White was at DOJ.

I was fortunate to be one of those friends of Byron White, and to know his warmth and good humor.

But it is his public virtues as a public man that we gather here today to primarily celebrate. Throughout his career in his high-ranking post at the Justice Department and the Supreme Court, he was, first, last, and always, a servant of the law. He despised hypocrisy, and had no use for those who would posture. . . For the public, he has left in his work at the Court, a rich treasure trove of opinions, manifesting an extraordinary intellectual vigor, and an unyielding insistence on honest explanation for the votes he cast as a justice. For those of us privileged to call him friend and colleague, he has left the indelible memory of a life with warmth, with courage, and with honor."

A photo on page 12 of the April Third Branch accompanying an article on the visit of a judicial delegation from the People’s Republic of China failed to identify participants. Judge Ronald S.W. Lew (C.D. Calif.), a member of the Judicial Conference Committee on International Judicial Relations, was shown, photo center, with Mira Gur-Arie, the Federal Judicial Center’s Chief of Interjudicial Affairs, photo right. An interpreter for the delegation accompanies them.