C. Ferdinand Sybert (September 16, 1900 – March 29, 1982) was

Attorney General of Maryland The Attorney General of the State of Maryland is the chief legal officer of the State of Maryland in the United States and is elected by the people every four years with no term limits. To run for the office a person must be a citizen of and qual ...

from 1954 to 1961, and a justice of the

Maryland Court of Appeals The Supreme Court of Maryland (previously the Maryland Court of Appeals) is the highest court of the U.S. state of Maryland. The court, which is composed of one chief justice and six associate justices, meets in the Robert C. Murphy Courts of ...

from 1961 to 1965.

Life and career

Born in

Loretto, Pennsylvania Loretto is a borough in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 census it had a population of 1,302. Like the rest of Cambria County, it is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Johnstown Metropolita ...

, to Pius A. Sybert, a grocer,Robert Highton,
Sybert Doesn't Regard Bench As 'Consolation'
''The Baltimore Evening Sun'' (January 4, 1961), p. 62. and Anna Marie (Haid) Sybert, the family moved to

Elkridge, Maryland Elkridge is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Howard County, Maryland, Howard County, Maryland, United States. Elkridge is a rapidly growing area; between the 2010 and the 2020 census, the population had grown from ...

, in 1902. Sybert attended parochial schools in Elkridge and Baltimore, then received an A.B. from Loyola College of Baltimore in 1922, followed by an

LL.B. 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 the

University of Maryland School of Law The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law (formerly University of Maryland School of Law from 1924 to 2011) is the law school of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and is located in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1816, it i ...

in 1925. While in law school, Sybert worked as a reporter for the ''

Baltimore News-Post The ''Baltimore News-American'' was a broadsheet newspaper published in downtown Baltimore, Maryland until May 27, 1986. It had a continuous lineage (in various forms) of more than 200 years. For much of the mid-20th century, it had the larges ...

''. He gained

admission to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in Maryland in 1925. In 1926, he ran unsuccessfully for a position as state's attorney, losing the Democratic primary. He won that office in 1934, and was re-elected in 1938 and 1942. In 1946, Sybert was elected to the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

, and due to his support of the candidacy of Governor

William Preston Lane Jr. William Preston Lane Jr. (May 12, 1892 – February 7, 1967) was an American attorney and politician who served as the List of governors of Maryland, 52nd Governor of Maryland from 1947 to 1951. Early life and education Lane was born in Hagersto ...

, was made speaker. He was elected attorney general of the state in 1954, and reelected in 1958. Governor J. Millard Tawes appointed Sybert to a newly established seat on the court of appeals, to which Sybert was sworn in on January 13, 1961. After his judicial career, Sybert continued to practice law as a partner in the firm Sybert, Sybert and Nippard from 1965 to 1974. He also participated in the 1967 Constitutional Convention of Maryland as a delegate from Howard County.

Personal life and death

Sybert married Elizabeth J. Johnson, with whom he had two sons and a daughter. His son, C. Ferdinand Sybert Jr., followed in his father's footsteps and became a prominent lawyer in Maryland. Sybert was actively involved in his community, serving on various boards and committees, including the Elkridge Rotary Club and the Howard County Bar Association. He died in

Ellicott City, Maryland Ellicott City is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place in, and the county seat of, Howard County, Maryland, Howard County, Maryland, United States. Part of the Baltimore metropolitan area, its ...

, at the age of 81, and was interred at St. Augustine Cemetery, Elkridge, Howard County.

Legacy

Sybert's contributions to Maryland's legal and political landscape were significant. His tenure as Attorney General and as a judge helped shape the judicial system in the state. He was known for his commitment to justice and his efforts to modernize the court system.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sybert, C. Ferdinand Maryland attorneys general Judges of the Supreme Court of Maryland 1900 births 1982 deaths Loyola University Maryland alumni University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law alumni Speakers of the Maryland House of Delegates People from Elkridge, Maryland Maryland Democrats 20th-century Maryland state court judges 20th-century American lawyers