Benjamin Wilson Coleman (July 1, 1869 – February 25, 1939) was a justice of the

Supreme Court of Nevada The Supreme Court of Nevada is the highest state court of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the head of the Nevada Judiciary. The main constitutional function of the Supreme Court is to review appeals made directly from the decisions of the distri ...

from 1915 to 1939.

Early life and education

Coleman was born in

Ballsville, Virginia Ballsville is an unincorporated community in Powhatan County, Virginia. The community is located approximately forty miles due west of Richmond. It is on Virginia State Route 13 between Powhatan, Virginia and Cumberland, Virginia. It is not t ...

on July 1, 1869, the son of John Coleman and Arabella Smith. He received his

LLB A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from Richmond College in 1892. He was the deputy district attorney in Cripple Creek,

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, before he married Martha L. Attleton and moved to Nevada in 1906. Coleman was a member of the

Knights Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military ord ...

Career

He practiced law in Ely until he was elected to the ninth Judicial District in 1911. He ran for, and was elected to, the supreme court in 1914 being re-elected four times and serving four terms as chief justice. In 1925, Coleman taught contract law at

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

Death

Coleman died in

Carson City, Nevada Carson City, officially the Carson City Consolidated Municipality, is an Independent city (United States), independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 58,63 ...

on February 25, 1939.

William Edwin Orr William Edwin Orr (October 26, 1881 – October 7, 1965) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Education and career Born in Frisco, Utah Territory, Orr attended the University of Nevada, ...

was appointed to fill Coleman's seat on the court.

References

1869 births 1939 deaths People from Powhatan County, Virginia Justices of the Supreme Court of Nevada University of Richmond alumni Chief justices of the Supreme Court of Nevada {{Nevada-state-judge-stub