Richard Winn Holmes (February 23, 1923 – September 4, 1999) was a justice of the

Kansas Supreme Court The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority in the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of seven justices, led by Chief Justice Marla Luckert, the court supervises the legal profession, administers the judicial branch, and serves as t ...

from September 17, 1977, to September 1, 1990, and chief justice from September 1, 1990, to August 31, 1995. Holmes was appointed to replace Robert H. Kaul, joining the court at the same time as Kay McFarland. Prior to the supreme court appointment Holmes had worked for the law firm Holmes, Mellor, Schaefer and Compton in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...

, and was also the chairman of the Wichita Bar Association's Ethics and Grievance Committee. In 1992 he was awarded the "Award of Merit" from the American Judges Association, an award that was renamed in 2000 to be the "Chief Justice Richard W. Holmes Award of Merit". In 1959 he founded the North American Judges Association, and was the chairman of the Kansas Judicial Council for two years. Holmes retired from the supreme court on August 31, 1995, at the age of 72 when Kay McFarland took his place as Chief Justice of the

. He retired 16 months earlier than the designated term end after participating in over 3600 decisions. The vacant position was then taken by

Edward Larson Edward John Larson (born September 21, 1953) is an American historian and legal scholar. He is university professor of history and holds the Hugh & Hazel Darling Chair in Law at Pepperdine University. He was formerly Herman E. Talmadge Chair o ...

. Holmes originated in

and during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

served in the Navy. He obtained a degree in business administration in 1950 from the

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

, then obtained his law degree from the

Washburn University School of Law The Washburn University School of Law is a public law school located on the main campus of Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. Washburn Law was founded in 1903. The school is accredited by the American Bar Association and has been a member of t ...

in 1953. He started his career practicing law with his father, with a speciality in corporation and probate law. He died September 4, 1999, at his home in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeastern Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2020 cen ...

at the age of 76.

References

External links

Photograph of the Kansas Supreme Court Justices 1978 (including Holmes)
Justices of the Kansas Supreme Court Chief justices of the Kansas Supreme Court Washburn University alumni Kansas State University alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II 1923 births 1999 deaths 20th-century American judges {{Kansas-state-judge-stub