Richard Van Thomas (October 11, 1932 – September 4, 2010) was an American attorney and jurist who served as a justice of the

Wyoming Supreme Court The Wyoming Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Wyoming. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices. Each Justice is appointed by the Governor of Wyoming from a list of three nominees submitted by the ...

from December 1974 until his retirement in February 2001. He served as chief justice from 1985 to 1986.

Background

Born in

Superior, Wyoming Superior is a town in Sweetwater County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 336 at the 2010 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land. Demographics 2010 census As of the ce ...

, he received his undergraduate degree from the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

, and his law degree from the

University of Wyoming College of Law The University of Wyoming College of Law is the law school of the University of Wyoming and the only law school located in Wyoming. It is situated in the Rocky Mountains in Laramie, Wyoming at 7,165 ft. between the Laramie Mountains and Sno ...

, followed by an LL.M. in tax law from the

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in N ...

Career

He returned to Wyoming serving in the

Judge Advocate General's Corps The Judge Advocate General's Corps, also known as JAG or JAG Corps, is the military justice branch or specialty of the United States Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps and Navy. Officers serving in the JAG Corps are typically called jud ...

for three years, worked in a law firm for a decade, and serving as the

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the District of Wyoming for five years. Governor

Stanley K. Hathaway Stanley Knapp Hathaway (July 19, 1924 – October 4, 2005) was an American politician who served as the 27th Governor of Wyoming from 1967 to 1975, and would later serve as United States Secretary of the Interior under President Gerald Ford ...

appointed Thomas to the state supreme court in 1974. Thomas was described by a colleague as "one of the more cerebral justices this court has ever seen," and as "congenial and hardworking".

Personal life

After retiring from the

, Thomas relocated to

Rio Rancho, New Mexico Rio Rancho ( es, Río Rancho) is the most populous and only city in Sandoval County, part of the expansive Albuquerque metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of New Mexico. A small portion of the city extends into northern Bernalillo County. It i ...

. He died there in 2010.

References

1932 births 2010 deaths People from Sweetwater County, Wyoming People from Lingle, Wyoming Politicians from Cheyenne, Wyoming People from Rio Rancho, New Mexico University of Wyoming alumni New York University School of Law alumni Wyoming lawyers Wyoming Republicans Justices of the Wyoming Supreme Court United States Attorneys for the District of Wyoming United States Air Force officers 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American Episcopalians {{Wyoming-stub