usclaw - USC Gould School of Law - University of Southern California

G R A D UAT E S
CLASS NOTES
countries, play in an orchestra and be active in
numerous organizations. He’s another avid golfe r,
as well. Doesn’t anybody go bowling anymore?
Bob Schaffer reports a very active life now that
both he and his wife Doris “finally and fully” retired
from the practice of law last November. He says
his new grandson is already studying to be a future
U SC quarterback. They stay active in supporting
the local Amnesty International chapter and
Canine Companions for Independence and other
local organizations such as Pfleger Institute for
Environmental Research in Oceanside. Bob has
been on the Oceanside Planning Commission for
over six years. They live between Oceanside and
Fallbrook in a rural area growing protea flo w e r s
and raising more fruit than they can eat, but not
enough to sell (but having fun). Bob and Doris
continue their passion for scuba diving and fondness
for the water and South Pa c i fic. In 2000 they
returned to dive the Solomon Islands, Palau and
Fiji and in September, 2000 they dove with the
h u m p b a ck whales during their migration and
breeding season in Tonga. Bob continues his
interest in underwater photography and has developed
an interest in underwater videography. Th e r e
is life after the practice of law! H o w a rd Th a l e r i s
totally un-retired. He wants to go out with his bo o t s
on “or until the appearance of the grim reaper.” It is
good to see that he’s still totally unreconstructed.
He has an active family law practice, pro tem work
and a trip to Switzerland to visit family. What, no
golf? Maybe two new grandchildren will mellow
him out, but it’s doubtful. Ron Ross, your reporter,
wishes to state that he is not now, nor has he ever
been, an avid or any other kind of golfe r. Grace and
I still enjoy travel and have now made it to every
continent, except Antarctica, and all fifty of these
United States. Between times, we enjoy family and
friends and life on the “beautiful Palos Ve r d e s
Pe n i n s u l a .” We will have finished our So u t h
American adventure early in 2001 and visited
nearly all of the countries in the continent. This will
probably be my final issue of Class Reporter for
our class of 1958. I have enjoyed my stint, but it
is time to pass the baton. Any volunteers?
Ron Ross, Class Report e r
Dorothy W. Nelson ’56 Honored for Career of Extraordinary Service
Judge Do rothy Wright Nelson ’56 re c e i ved the Be r n a rd E. Witkin Medal from the California St a t e
Bar Association in recognition of her lifelong service to the community and her pro f e s s i o n .
Judge Nelson was praised for a career that has “g reatly influenced the science of jurispru d e n c e
and the quality of justice in the legal profession.” Dean of the USC
Law School from 1969 to 1980, Judge Nelson left the school to accept
an appointment from President Jimmy Carter to the 9th U.S. Circ u i t
C o u rt of Appeals. She has served on a number of federal boards and
panels, including the Pre s i d e n t’s Commission on Pension Po l i c y, the
B o a rd of Visitors of the U.S. Air Fo rce Academy and the James Ma d i s o n
Memorial Fe l l owship Fo u n d a t i o n’s board of trustees. She co-chaired the
White House Conference on Children in 1970.
Judge Nelson is a graduate of UCLA and its law school. Sh e
completed an LL.M. at USC in 1956 and joined the Law School’s faculty
Dorothy Wright Nelson
a year later. In 1968, she became the first woman dean of the Law School
and the first woman to head a leading American law school.
The Witkin award was established in 1993 to honor Professor Witkin. It has since been award e d
to other attorneys, judges and academics who have served the law with particular distinction.
William Matthew Byrne, Jr. ’56 Honored for Dedication to Bench
Friends, colleagues, former classmates and law clerks gathered in November to commemorate Ju d g e
William Matthew By rne, Jr. ’s 30 years as a judge in the U.S. District Court, including service as
chief judge of the Central District of California.
At a banquet sponsored by the Los Angeles County Bar Association,
the Federal Bar Association and the Association of Business Tr i a l
L a w yers, Judge Byrne was praised for his distinguished career and his
unfailing dedication to the court and the community.
Judge Byrne holds a bachelor’s degree in business and an LL.B. fro m
USC. After serving two years with the U.S. Air Fo rce, he served as an
assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of California for two
years. In 1967, after seven years in private practice, he returned to
g overnment work as a U.S. attorney for the Central District of
California. He was appointed to the U.S. District Court in 1971 by
William Matthew Byrne, Jr.
President Richard Ni xon.
In addition to a stellar career of service, Judge Byrne seems to have the law in his blood. Se ve r a l
of his re l a t i ves have had careers as lawyers and judges, including his father, William Ma t t h ew By r n e ,
Sr., who was also a federal judge. The crowded banquet honoring Judge By r n e’s career was furt h e r
evidence of his far-reaching ties to the legal community in California. Among the more than 900
people who attended the dinner we re 58 of the judge’s former law clerks and a table of former
USC classmates.
USCLAW s p r i n g 2001
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