George Rossman (March 8, 1885 – March 11, 1967) was an American lawyer and judge. He was the 29th Chief Justice of the

Oregon Supreme Court The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest State court (United States), state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

native served on

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

’s highest court for the longest time of any judge in the court's history, from 1927 to 1965. Previously he had worked as a judge for the city of

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

and for

Multnomah County, Oregon Multnomah County is one of the Oregon counties, 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county's population was 815,428. Multnomah County is part of the Portland metropolitan area. The stat ...

Early life

Rossman was born on March 8, 1885, in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, to George T. Rossman and Mary Rossman.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. The family then moved to

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

in 1887 where the younger George received his education and later worked in the mercantile trade. During this time he took correspondence courses from

Whitworth College Whitworth University is a private Christian university that is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church and located in Spokane, Washington, United States. Founded in 1890, Whitworth enrolls nearly 2,600 students and offers more than 100 graduate ...

, graduating in 1907 with an A.B. degree in architecture. However, he never became an architect and moved back to Chicago where he earned 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 Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

in 1910.

Oregon

In 1910, Rossman moved to

and began private practice, which he continued until 1917. During this time he married Loretta Showers (d. 1959) in June 1914 in Portland, with whom he had one son, George S. Rossman. Then in 1917 he left private practice and became a city judge until 1922, followed by time as a county circuit court judge from 1922 until 1927. On September 13, 1927, George Rossman was appointed by

Oregon Governor The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. ter ...

I. L. Patterson to replace justice George H. Burnett on the Oregon Supreme Court after Burnett died in office.Oregon Blue Book: Earliest Authorities in Oregon - Supreme Court Justices of Oregon.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 23, 2008.Oregon State Archives: Oregon Governor's Records Guides.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 23, 2008. Rossman then won a full six-year term on the bench in 1928 followed by re-elections in 1934, 1940, 1946, 1952, and 1958. While serving on the court he helped to found the Capital Card Club in Salem in 1938. He served as chief justice from 1947 to 1949 before retiring from the bench at the end of his term in 1965. George Rossman is the longest serving justice in the history of the

. During this time Rossman served on an advisory committee for the

American Law Institute The American Law Institute (ALI) is a research and advocacy group of judges, lawyers, and legal scholars limited to 3,000 elected members and established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of United States common law and i ...

to help draft A Model Code of Pre-Arraignment Procedure. In 1960, ''Advocacy and the King’s English'' was published by The American Society of Legal Writers, which he edited. In 1961, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Award as a faculty member at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

Later years

Rossman was a trustee at

Pacific University Pacific University is a private university in Forest Grove, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Tualatin Academy, the original Forest Grove campus is west of Portland. Affiliated with the United Church of Christ, the school mainta ...

, and after leaving the court was a lecturer. George Rossman died on March 11, 1967, in Salem at the age of 82 years.Rossman, Ex-Justice Of High Court, Dead. ''

Oregon Statesman The ''Statesman Journal'' is the major daily newspaper published in Salem, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1851 as the ''Oregon Statesman'', it later merged with the ''Capital Journal'' to form the current newspaper, the second-oldest in Orego ...

'', March 12, 1967.

References

External links

Women Lawyers’ Journal: The Woman Juror
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rossman, George 1885 births University of Oregon faculty University of Chicago Law School alumni Lawyers from Chicago Oregon state court judges Politicians from Salem, Oregon Chief justices of the Oregon Supreme Court 1967 deaths 20th-century American judges Lawyers from Salem, Oregon 20th-century American lawyers Justices of the Oregon Supreme Court