Ira Francis Thompson (June 20, 1885 – August 4, 1937) was an associate justice of the

Supreme Court of California The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacra ...

from December 31, 1932, to August 4, 1937.

Early years

Born on a farm in Crawford County, Wisconsin, to James Franklin Thompson and Minerva Julia Drake, Thompson lost his father and mother when he was a child. At the age of 15, he moved to

Eureka, California Eureka (Wiyot: ''Jaroujiji'', Hupa: ''do'-wi-lotl-ding'', Karuk: ''uuth'') is the principal city and county seat of Humboldt County in the Redwood Empire region of California. The city is located on U.S. Route 101 on the shores of Humboldt ...

to begin high school, from which he graduated in 1904. After school, he worked part-time running errands at his uncle's newspaper, the ''Humboldt Standard''. Thompson studied at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

, where he paid his own school fees and finished a six-year law curriculum in four years, receiving both an

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

and LL.B. degree in 1909. On July 2, 1909, he was admitted to the

State Bar of California The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...

Career

After graduation, Thompson worked in Oakland for a year for the firm of Reed, Black & Reed. Then Thompson moved to Los Angeles and began private practice with John F. Manning in the firm of Manning, Thompson & Hoover. Thompson immersed himself in civic causes and

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

politics. In 1920, Thompson ran unsuccessfully on the Republican ticket for the position of judge of the

Los Angeles County Superior Court The Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, is the California superior court with jurisdiction over Los Angeles County, which includes the city of Los Angeles. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States. The ...

. During the campaign, he gave a speech to the Sons of America opposing citizenship for Japanese immigrants. In 1923, Governor

Friend Richardson Friend William Richardson (born William Richardson; December 1, 1865September 6, 1943) was an American newspaper publisher and politician, most famous for supporting a 1923 gun control bill aimed at Chinese and Latinos. A member of the Progressiv ...

appointed him a judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. In October 1926, Governor

elevated Thompson to the position of Associate Justice of the

Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...

, Second District. He was re-elected to this office. In Summer 1928, he lectured on ethics at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

. On December 8, 1932,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

James Rolph, Jr. James "Sunny Jim" Rolph Jr. (August 23, 1869 – June 2, 1934) was an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected to a single term as the 27th governor of California from January 6, 1931, until his death on June 2 ...

appointed Thompson to the California Supreme Court to fill the vacant seat due to the death of John E. Richards. Thompson began his term on December 31, 1932, and the term expired January 1, 1935. To fill Thompson's seat on the Court of Appeal, Governor Rolph appointed Judge

Albert Lee Stephens Sr. Albert Lee Stephens Sr. (January 25, 1874 – January 15, 1965) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 1937 to 1965. Prior to that, he was a United States district judge of the United ...

of the Los Angeles Superior Court to the position. In November 1934, Thompson ran for re-election as a Republican and won a 12-year term.

Death

On August 4, 1937, Thompson died while in office. Rolph filled the vacancy with the appointment of Frederick W. Houser to the Supreme Court.

Personal life

While at UC Berkeley, he met his future wife, Cora Hilda Manning. On June 1, 1910, they married and together had two children: Elizabeth and John.

Judicial experience

* Judge, Los Angeles Superior Court, September 1, 1923 – October 4, 1926 * Associate Justice, California Court of Appeal, Second District, Division Two, October 5, 1926 – December 30, 1932 * Associate Justice, California Supreme Court, December 31, 1932 – August 4, 1937

Professional background

* Lecturer on Legal Ethics,

, 1926 – 1932 * Manning, Thompson & Hoover, 1910 – 1923 * Reed, Black & Reed, 1909 – 1910

References

External links

Ira F. Thompson
California Supreme Court Historical Society.
''In Memoriam''
9 Cal. Rpts. 2d 783 (1937).
Ira F. Thompson
California Court of Appeal, Second District, Division Two.

California State Courts.