William L. Nuessle (May 5, 1878 – March 30, 1959) was a justice of the

North Dakota Supreme Court The North Dakota Supreme Court is the highest court of law in the state of North Dakota. The Court rules on questions of law in appeals from the state's district courts. Each of the five justices are elected on a no-party ballot for ten year te ...

from 1923 to December 31, 1950. He first won election to court in 1922. He subsequently won reelection in 1928, 1934, and 1940. He had previously served as a judge on the

North Dakota District Courts North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

and as the

state's attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...

for McLean County.

Early life and education

Nuessle was born May 5, 1878, in North Boston,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. In 1866, he moved with his parents to the

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of No ...

, living on a

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

near Emerato in Grand Forks County. Nuessle attended public schools in the Grand Forks area for his early education. He attended the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (also known as UND or North Dakota) is a public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of ...

, receiving his

Bachelor of Arts 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 ...

in 1889 and his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

in 1901.

Career

Nuessle was admitted to the bar and opened a legal office in Goodrich, North Dakota. In 1904, he moved to

Washburn Washburn (alternatively Wasseburne, Wasseborne, Wasshebourne, Wassheborne, Washbourne, Washburne, Washborne, Washborn, Wasborn, Washbon) is a toponymic surname, probably of Old English origin, with likely Anglo-Norman and Norman-French influen ...

, North Dakota and was elected

for McLean County, holding the position for four years. In 1912, Nuessle was elected to the

District Court of North Dakota A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

bench. On this court he served in the sixth and fourth judicial districts. He served on this court until his 1922 election to the

. Nuessle was elected at the age of 44 to the Supreme Court of North Dakota. He was reelected in 1928, 1934, and 1940. He ran for judge 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 ...

. After serving on the bench for 28 years he retired on December 31, 1950, at the expiration of the final term to which he had been elected. After his retirement, he remained in Bismarck, North Dakota. He died on March 30, 1959, at the age of 80.

Coaching record

References

External links

* 1878 births 1959 deaths North Dakota Fighting Hawks football coaches North Dakota Fighting Hawks football players Justices of the North Dakota Supreme Court North Dakota Republicans People from Erie County, New York People from Grand Forks County, North Dakota People from Sheridan County, North Dakota People from McLean County, North Dakota State's attorneys in North Dakota People from Bismarck, North Dakota North Dakota state court judges {{NorthDakota-state-judge-stub