Ruby Kless Sondock (born April 26, 1926) is a former
Associate Justice of the
Texas Supreme Court. She was the first woman to serve on the Texas Supreme Court.
Sondock initially attended the
University of Houston Law Center in order to become a legal secretary, but she was admitted to the state bar a year before her graduation as
valedictorian of her class (1962).
Sondock was appointed to the Harris County Domestic Relations Court No. 5 in 1973 and to the 234th District Court in 1977. Sondock was the first woman to be appointed as a State District Judge in
Harris County, Texas.
Sondock was appointed to the Texas Supreme Court following the death of Associate Justice
James G. Denton
James Gray Denton (May 27, 1917 – June 10, 1982) was a justice of the Supreme Court of Texas
The Supreme Court of Texas (SCOTX) is the court of last resort for civil matters (including juvenile delinquency cases, which are categorized as civi ...
on June 10, 1982. Sondock served from June 25 to December 31 of that year, completing Denton's term. Sondock declined to seek election to the Supreme Court and instead ran successfully for reelection to her District Court seat the following year. Sondock was the court's first female justice, with the exception of a special all-woman court convened in 1925 to hear a single case.
[ Sondock formed part of the majority of the Texas Supreme Court in the landmark case of '']Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S. A. v. Hall
''Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S. A. v. Hall'', 466 U.S. 408 (1984), was an American case decided by the United States Supreme Court, holding that purchases in the United States by an out-of-state corporation did not establish general perso ...
''.
A distinguished legal mind, Sondock has received a number of accolades, including an annual lecture series on legal ethics
Legal ethics are principles of conduct that members of the legal profession are expected to observe in their practice. They are an outgrowth of the development of the legal profession itself.
In the United States
In the U.S., each state or territ ...
. Former speakers at the Sondock Lecture on Legal Ethics at the University of Houston Law Center include U.S. Senator
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 powe ...
Orrin Hatch and Helen Thomas. On November 11, 2015, the Litigation Section of the State Bar of Texas inducted Sondock as a "Texas Legal Legend."
See also
* List of female state supreme court justices Female state supreme court justices
First female justices
Below is a list of the names of the first woman to sit on the highest court of their respective states in the United States.
The first state with a female justice was Ohio; Florence E. ...
References
External links
Interview
(video)
1926 births
Living people
Justices of the Texas Supreme Court
Texas Democrats
20th-century American women judges
20th-century American judges
University of Houston Law Center alumni
20th-century American women lawyers
20th-century American lawyers
Texas lawyers
Texas state court judges
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