Martin A. Nelson (February 21,1889 –May 22,1979) was an American attorney,politician,and jurist from Minnesota. He served as an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. [1]
Nelson was born in Hesper Township,Winneshiek County,Iowa and received his early education there. He later moved to Minnesota and earned his law degree from William Mitchell College of Law (then the St. Paul College of Law) in 1916.
Nelson practiced law in St. Paul,Minnesota,prior to his enlistment. During World War I,Nelson served as an aviator and aviation instructor at American air training fields. From 1919 to 1944,he practiced law at Austin,Minnesota. He served as a trustee of St. Olaf Hospital in Austin for 22 years including 10 years as board president. He was a delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 1928 and 1932. [2] [3]
Nelson obtained the Republican gubernatorial nomination in 1934 and 1936,but lost both general elections to Floyd B. Olson and Elmer A. Benson,respectively. In 1942,he was an independent candidate for the United States Senate from Minnesota,receiving 14.4% of the vote and coming in third place. In 1944,he was appointed a state court district judge in Austin,Minnesota. Governor C. Elmer Anderson appointed him to the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1953,to fill a vacancy caused by the elevation of Roger L. Dell to be chief justice. He served until his retirement in 1972. Nelson's fight to remain on the court despite his advanced age (he finally retired at eighty-two) spawned the law mandating retirement for state judges at the age of seventy. [4] [5]
Elmer Austin Benson was an American lawyer and politician from Minnesota. In 1935,Benson was appointed to the U.S. Senate following the death of Thomas Schall. He served as the 24th governor of Minnesota,defeating Republican Martin Nelson in a landslide in Minnesota's 1936 gubernatorial election. He lost the governorship two years later to Republican Harold Stassen in the 1938 gubernatorial election.
William Mitchell College of Law was a private,independent law school located in St. Paul,Minnesota,United States,from 1956 to 2015. Accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA),it offered full- and part-time legal education in pursuit of the Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree. On December 9,2015,Hamline University School of Law merged into William Mitchell College of Law,and became the Mitchell Hamline School of Law.
Russell A. Anderson was an attorney who served as Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. He served as an associate justice of the court from September 1,1998 until he was sworn in as chief justice on January 10,2006. He retired from the Supreme Court on June 1,2008,at age 66,and was succeeded by Eric J. Magnuson.
Lawrence R. Yetka was an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives.
John Luke Hill Jr. was an American lawyer,Democratic politician,and judge. He is the only person to have served as Secretary of State of Texas,Texas Attorney General,and Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court.
Thomas F. Gallagher was a justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court from 1943 until his retirement in 1967.
Sam Hanson is an American lawyer and judge from the state of Minnesota. He served on the Minnesota Court of Appeals from 2000 to 2002 and as an Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court from 2002 to 2008. When not serving on the bench,he has practiced with the Minneapolis law firm of Briggs &Morgan.
John E. Simonett was an attorney and associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. He was famous for his wit and thoughtfulness,characteristics reflected both in his judicial opinions,and in his writings and speeches. In 2007,he was named one of the 100 most influential attorneys in Minnesota history. Of his six daughters and sons,two became judges,one serving as the fourth Chief Judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals from 1994 to 1995.
Roger L. Dell was an American businessman,lawyer,and jurist.
Henry M. Gallagher was an American jurist.
Franklin Swift Billings Jr. was an American politician and judge from the state of Vermont. Billings served as Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives,Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court and Chief United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont.
Robert J. Sheran was an American lawyer,politician,and judge. He was appointed Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court by Governor Wendell Anderson,serving from December 1973 to December 1981. He previously served as an associate justice on the court from January 1963 to July 1970,appointed by Governor Elmer L. Andersen. He is the only person to have been appointed to two separate tenures on the Minnesota Supreme Court by different governors.
Oscar R. Knutson was an American lawyer and judge from Minnesota.
James Robert Hannah was an American jurist. After attending college and law school at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville,Hannah opened a private law practice in Searcy. He practiced law for a decade,entering public service in part-time city attorney and city judge roles in small towns across the Arkansas Grand Prairie. He won election as Chancery Judge of the 17th District in 1979,and held the position until 1999,when he was nominated to the Arkansas Supreme Court. He served as an associate justice for four years,becoming chief justice in 2005. Hannah held the top position for ten years,until resigning in 2015.
Ingerval M. Olsen was an American attorney and jurist who served on the Minnesota Supreme Court.
Frank T. Gallagher was an American jurist.
Natalie E. Hudson is a justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court.
John A. Matthews was a justice of the Montana Supreme Court from 1919 to 1920,and again from 1925 to 1937.
Frank D. Thompson was a Vermont attorney and judge. He is most notable for his service as an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1929 to 1937.
Mitchell Hamline School of Law is a private law school in Saint Paul,Minnesota. It is accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and offers full and part-time legal education for its Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree.