Randall B. Kester (October 20, 1916 – May 31, 2012) was an American attorney and judge in the state of
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
. He was the 69th justice of the
Oregon Supreme Court
The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.Lewis & Clark Law School
The Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College (also known as Lewis & Clark Law School), is an American Bar Association-approved private law school in Portland, Oregon.
The law school received ABA approval in 1970 and joined the Asso ...
and was in private practice in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
Oregon State Bar Bulletin
The Oregon State Bar Association (OSBA) is a public corporation and instrumentality of the Oregon Judicial Department in the U.S. state of Oregon. Founded in 1890 as the private Oregon Bar Association, it became a public entity in 1935 that regulat ...
'', June 2003. As a child he worked at the county library in Ontario, Oregon where he earned 50¢ per week to haul books to and from the post office that had been delivered by the
Oregon State Library
The State Library of Oregon in Salem, is the library for the U.S. state of Oregon. The mission of the State Library of Oregon is to provide leadership and resources to continue growing vibrant library services for Oregonians with print disabil ...
. During high school he worked for the local newspaper, the ''
Ontario Argus
The ''Argus Observer'' is the daily newspaper of Ontario, Oregon, United States.
The newspaper was established on January 6, 1897, and went through several names and owners before becoming the ''Argus Observer'', which is a reference to Argus Pano ...
Salem, Oregon
Salem ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County, Oregon, Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river ...
he worked for the state library when it was located at the
Oregon Supreme Court Building
The Oregon Supreme Court Building is the home to the Oregon Supreme Court, Oregon Court of Appeals, and the Oregon Judicial Department. Located in the state capitol complex in Salem, it is Oregon's oldest state government building. The three story ...
. In 1935, the
Oregon State Capitol
The Oregon State Capitol is the building housing the state legislature and the offices of the governor, secretary of state, and treasurer of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located in the state capitol, Salem. Constructed from 1936 to 1938 ...
burned down and many of the books of the state library were damaged by water as they were stored in the basement of the Supreme Court Building which was connected by tunnels to the Capitol Building. Kester's job was to try and dry out and salvage as many books as he could. In 1937 as president of the senior class he helped break ground on a new library for Willamette. After graduating in 1937 Kester then attended law school in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
and joined the law firm of Maguire, Shields and Morrison where the primary client was the
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
he volunteered with the Mount Hood Ski Patrol and is credited with keeping that organization going during the war when many of the regular patrollers were off fighting in the war.
Kester was president of the Multnomah Bar Association from 1956 to early 1957.
On January 3, 1957, he was appointed by Oregon Governor
Elmo Smith
Elmo Everett Smith (November 19, 1909July 15, 1968) was an American Republican politician who served as the 27th Governor of Oregon from 1956 to 1957.
Early life
Smith was born in Grand Junction, Colorado on November 19, 1909. At the age of ten ...
to the
Oregon Supreme Court
The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.Walter L. Tooze who had died in office.Oregon State Archives: Governor's Records Guides. Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on February 3, 2008.Oregon Blue Book: Supreme Court Justices of Oregon. Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on February 3, 2008. Kester served on the court until March 1, 1958, when he resigned from the bench. He resigned in order to become the general solicitor for Union Pacific's legal department in the Pacific Northwest.
While working for UP in 1972 he filed briefs in support of the lower court's decision in the
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
interstate commerce
The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among ...
. Then in 1980 Kester retired from Union Pacific and went back to his old firm. From 1986 to 1987 he was president of the
City Club of Portland
The City Club of Portland is a nonprofit, nonpartisan civic organization based in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Established in 1916, the organization had approximately 1500 members and a paid staff of 4 in 2013. The former Mayor of Portlan ...
.
Later years and death
As of January 2006 at the age of 89 he was believed to be the oldest lawyer in
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
still practicing law. At that time he was a senior partner for Cosgrave Vergeer Kester in Portland. Randall Kester died on May 31, 2012, at the age of 95 from natural causes in his home of Portland, Oregon.
Works authored
*"The War Industries Board, 1917–1918; A Study in Industrial Mobilization". ''The American Political Science Review'', Vol. 34, No. 4. (Aug. 1940).
*''The First duty: a history of the U.S. District Court for Oregon''. Portland, Or: U.S. District Court of Oregon Historical Society, (1993), contributor.