John C. Shabaz (June 25, 1931August 31, 2012) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. He served 30 years as a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

for the

Western District of Wisconsin The United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin (in case citations, W.D. Wis.) is a federal court in the Seventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are a ...

, and was Chief Judge between 1996 and 2001. Earlier in his career, he represented

Waukesha County Waukesha County () is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 406,978, making it the third-most populous county in Wisconsin. Its county seat and largest city is Waukesha. Waukesha Co ...

in the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

for 16 years as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, serving as minority leader from 1973 to 1981.

Education and early career

Shabaz was born in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. He attended the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

as an undergraduate. He received a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from

Marquette University Law School Marquette University Law School is the professional graduate law school of Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is one of two law schools in Wisconsin and the only private law school in the state. Founded in 1892 as the Milwaukee Law ...

in 1957. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

from 1954 to 1956. He was in private practice in

West Allis West Allis is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. A suburb of Milwaukee, it is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 60,325 at the 2020 census. History The name West Allis derives from Edward P. Allis, ...

from 1957 to 1981.

Legislative career

From 1964 to 1981, Shabaz served as a

state representative in the

, from the 83rd Assembly District, representing the Waukesha and New Berlin areas. He was the minority leader from 1973 to 1979 and served as Assistant Majority Leader in 1969.

Federal judicial service

On November 4, 1981, Shabaz was nominated by President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

to a seat on the

United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin The United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin (in case citations, W.D. Wis.) is a federal court in the Seventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ap ...

vacated by Judge

James Edward Doyle James Edward Doyle (July 6, 1915 – April 1, 1987) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin and a leader of the Wisconsin Democratic Party. Education and career Born in Osh ...

. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on December 9, 1981, and received his commission on December 10, 1981. He served as Chief Judge from 1996 to 2001. He took

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

on January 20, 2009, serving in that status until his death on August 31, 2012. As of 2020, Shabaz is the last judge appointed by a Republican president to the Western District of Wisconsin.

References

Sources

* , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Shabaz, John C. 1931 births 2012 deaths Judges of the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin Marquette University Law School alumni Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Politicians from Milwaukee Military personnel from Wisconsin United States Army officers United States district court judges appointed by Ronald Reagan 20th-century American judges University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni