These papers document Edward S. Smith's service on the US Court of Claims, his appointment to the court, court administration, articles and speeches, and the federal court re-organization of the late 1970s that concluded with the Federal Courts Improvement Act of 1979, and the creation of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
The collection reflects the administrative process that took place "to restructure a portion of the intermediate appellate tier." Judge Smith was appointed Judge of the Court of Claims in 1979. There were too many appeals and very few judges, so it was necessaryy to allow the reorganization. In 1978-1979, Daniel J. Meador, assistant attorney general, sent a proposal for restructuring the court system. This set of papers, called the Meador Report, began the process that concluded with the Federal Courts Improvement Act of 1979 and launched the necessary legislation to establish the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. There are proposals, commentaries, discussions, hearings, statements, and memoranda between judges. This collection can be an excellent source of information on how the courts work internally.
This collection was donated to the Arthur J. Morris Law Library by Judge Smith's children, Edward S. Smith and Innes Richards, in August 2001.
The papers are arranged in the following groups:
Service on the US Court of Claims: correspondence, letters of recommendation, memoranda between judges and personal notes regarding court of claims appointments, and court administration rules, dating from primarily from 1977-1982. Boxes 1-2.
Creation of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal District: Meador Report materials, dating from 1978-1991. Boxes 2-5.
Federal Circuit Administration: materials related to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, various surveys, reports, and rules regarding procedures, dating from 1976-1997. Boxes 6-8.
Personal: resume, published articles, letters, speeches, class notes, and working materials, dating from 1964-1985. Box 9.
Edward S. Smith was born in Birmingham, Alabama, 27 March 1919. He studied at the University of Virginia, from which he received his BA in 1941 and LLB /JD in 1947. He also studied mechanical engineering at the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University) from 1936-1938. In September 1941, he entered active duty as an Apprentice Seaman. He participated in the initial amphibious attacks in North Africa, Sicily, Normandy, Southern France, and Okinawa. In 1944, he was gunnery officer of the
From 1947 to 1961 he was an associate and partner with the firm of Blair, Korner, Doyle, Worth, and Crampton (this firm changed names). From 1961, he worked in the tax division of the US Department of Justice, as chief of the trial section. There, he reorganized and administered several sections of the tax division and supervised civil refund litigation in all US District Courts and the US Courts of Claims. In 1962 and 1963, he served as deputy assistant attorney general for civil rights. From 1963 to 1977, he was partner in the law firm of Piper & Marbury Attorneys, in the city of Baltimore, where he was the head of the tax and estates department. In 1978, he was appointed to the US Courts of Claims as an associate judge. From 1982-1989, he was judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. In 1989, he became a senior circuit judge and moved to Alabama, where he continued to work until his death.
Judge Smith was member of the American Bar Association; the Bar Association of the city of Baltimore; the Baltimore Association of Tax Counsel; the National Tax Association; the Tax Institute of America; the Federal Bar Association; the District of Columbia Bar (1948, Tax Division); the Virginia State Bar (1947); the Bar Association of the District of Columbia (member of the Committee on US Courts of Claims); and a permanent member of the Judicial Conference of the Fourth Circuit. He was also a member of the Democratic Party. He taught as adjunct faculty at the University of Samford Law School and at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
Judge Edward S. Smith died March 22, 2001 in Birmingham, Alabama.
Richard H. Appert, Esq. New York, New York
S. Eason Balch, Esq. Birmingham, Alabama
John S. Battle Richmond, Virginia
William C. Battle President of Field Crest Mills, Inc. Eden, N. C.
Alexis I. du Pont Bayard, Esq. Wilmington, Delaware
Senator Birch Bayh Washington, D. C.
George Beall, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Giora Ben-Horin, Esq. Phoenix, Arizona
Edward B. Benjamin, Jr., Esq. New Orleans, Louisiana
Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Washington, D. C.
John M. Bray, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Mortimer Caplin, Esq,. Washington, D. C.
Gene A. Castleberry, Esq. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Calvin H. Cobb, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Sheldon S. Cohen, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Scott P. Crampton, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Barbara B. Creed, Esq. San Francisco, California
Eugene G. Eason, Esq. C/o Steptoe & Johnson Clarksburg, West Virginia
E. Charles Eichenbaum, Esq. Little Rock, Arkansas
H. Vernon Eney, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Hon. M. Carr Ferguson Tax Division, U. S. Dept of Justice Washington, D. C.
Marvin Joseph Garbis, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Charles W. Hall Houston, Texas
John H. Hall, Esq. Los Angeles, California
Don V. Harris, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Isaac Hecht, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
F. Cleveland Hedrick, Jr. Washington, D. C.
Lee H. Henkel, Jr., Esq. Atlanta, Georgia
Vester T. Hughes, Jr. Esq. Dallas, Texas
Henry C. Ikenberry, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Hon. Philip C. Jackson, Jr. Washington, D. C.
Julian I. Jacobs, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Bruce H. Johnson, Esq. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
John B. Jones, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Senator. Edward M. Kennedy Washington, D. C.
William L. Kinzer, Esq. Atlanta, Georgia
Jules G. Korner, III Washington, D. C.
Hover T. Lenz, Esq. Denver, Colorado
Warren V. Ludlam, Esq. Jackson, Mississippi
Charles C. MacLean, Esq. New York, New York
William D. McLean, Esq. Rockville, Maryland
Senator Charles Mc C. Mathias, Jr. Washington, D. C.
Donald L. McCaskey, Esq.. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Robert P. Mittelman, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Stanley C. Morris, Jr. Washington, D. C.
Senator Sam Nunn Washington, D. C.
Hon. Louis F. Oberdorfer McLean, Virginia
John S. Pennell, Esq. Chicago, Ill.
John T. Piper Bogle & Gates Seattle, Washington
Lester M. Ponder, Esq. Indianapolis, Indiana
C. Frank Reifsnyder, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Mitchell Rogovin, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Alan F. Rothschild, Esq. Columbus, Georgia
Michael C. Russ, Esq. Atlanta, Georgia
Frank P. Samford, Jr., Esq. Birmingham, Alabama
Hon. Barefoot Sanders, Jr., Esq Dallas, Texas
Jacques T. Schlenger, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Esward J. Schmuck, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Bernard G. Segal, Esq. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Sargent Shriver, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Sherwin P. Simmons, Esq. Trebam, Simmons, Kemper, Scharf, Barkin, Frye & O'Neill Tampa, Florida
George A. Smathers, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Gary P. Smith, Esq. Birmingham, Alabama Senator John Sparkman Washington, D. C.
Hart H. Spiegel, Esq. San Francisco, California
Dean Emerson Spies Charlottesville, Virginia
Norman A. Sugarman, Esq. Washington, D. C.
William A. Sutherland, Esq. Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan Washington, D. C.
Senator Herman E. Talmadge Washington, D. C.
S. Shepherd Tate, Esq. Memphis, Tennessee
Joseph D. Tydings, Esq. Washington, D. C.
William Waller, Esq. Nashville, Tennessee
Johnie M. Walters, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Meade Whitaker, Esq. Washington, D. C.
W. Bew White, Jr., Esq. Birmingham, Alabama
Stanley H. Wilen, Esq. Baltimore, Maryland
Glen A. Wilkinson, Esq. Washington, D. C.
Elliott T. Williams, Esq. Birmingham, Alabama
Andrew B. Young, Esq. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania