Robert Emmet Tehan (January 7, 1905November 27, 1975) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

attorney, Democratic politician, and

United States federal judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

. He was a U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Wisconsin from 1949 to 1971, and was Chief Judge from 1954 to 1971. He previously served twelve years in the

Wisconsin Legislature The Wisconsin Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house, Wisconsin State Senate, and the lower Wisconsin State Assembly, both of which have had Republican ...

Education and career

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 ...

, Tehan received an

Artium Baccalaureus 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 ...

degree from

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Henni, John Martin ...

in 1927. 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 in 1929. He was in private practice in Wisconsin from 1930 to 1949. He was a member of 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, ...

from 1937 to 1942. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate from 1942 to 1948.Wisconsin Historical Society-Robert E. Tehan
wisconsinhistory.org; accessed December 27, 2017.

Federal judicial service

Tehan was nominated by President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

on April 5, 1949, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin vacated by Judge

F. Ryan Duffy Francis Ryan Duffy (June 23, 1888 – August 16, 1979) was a United States senator from Wisconsin, a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and a United States district judge of the United State ...

. 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 May 17, 1949, and received his commission two days later. He served as Chief Judge from 1954 to 1971. He assumed

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 June 30, 1971. Tehan served until his death on November 27, 1975, in Milwaukee.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tehan, Robert Emmet 1905 births 1975 deaths Marquette University alumni Marquette University Law School alumni Lawyers from Milwaukee Wisconsin state senators Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin United States district court judges appointed by Harry S. Truman 20th-century American judges 20th-century American politicians