- Randall B. Kester
Infobox Judge
name = Randall B. Kester
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office = 69th Associate Justice of theOregon Supreme Court
termstart = 1957
termend = 1958
nominator =
appointer =Elmo Smith
predecessor =Walter L. Tooze
successor =Gordon Sloan
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termstart2 =
termend2 =
nominator2 =
appointer2 =
predecessor2 =
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birthdate = Birth date and age|1916|10|20|mf=y
birthplace =
deathdate =
deathplace =
spouse = Rachel W. KesterRandall B. Kester (born 1916) is an American attorney and former judge. He was the 69th Associate Justice on the
Oregon Supreme Court , serving from 1957 to 1958. He is currently a lawyer inPortland, Oregon at the firm of Cosgrave Vergeer Kester, LLP where he is a senior partner.Early life
Kester was born on
October 20 1916 and grew up inEastern Oregon . [ [http://www.mbabar.org/docs/newsletters/ml_dec2006.pdf On Growing Old.] "Multnomah Lawyer", December 2006.] Kester, Randall. [http://www.osbar.org/publications/bulletin/03june/heritage.html Oregon Legal Heritage: EX LIBRIS.] "Oregon State Bar Bulletin ", June 2003.] As a child he worked at the county library inOntario, Oregon where he earned 50¢ per week to haul books to and from the post office that had been delivered by theOregon State Library . During high school he worked for the local newspaper, the "Ontario Argus".Later while in college at
Willamette University inSalem, Oregon he worked for the state library when it was located at theOregon Supreme Court Building . In 1935 theOregon State Capitol burned down and many of the books of the state library were damaged by water as they were stored in the basement of the Supreme Court Building which was connected by tunnels to the Capitol Building. Kester’s job was to try and dry out and salvage as many books as he could. In 1937 as president of the senior class he helped break ground on a new library for Willamette. After graduating in 1937 Kester then attended law school inNew York City atColumbia Law School , graduating in 1940.Legal career
After graduation from Columbia, Kester moved to
Portland, Oregon and joined the law firm of Maguire, Shields and Morrison where the primary client was theUnion Pacific Railroad . DuringWorld War II he volunteered with theMount Hood Ski Patrol and is credited with keeping that organization going during the war when many of the regular patrollers were off fighting in the war. [ [http://www.mthoodskipatrol.org/about/history.cfm?cat_id=2 History of the Mount Hood Ski Patrol.] Mount Hood Ski Patrol. Retrieved onFebruary 3 2008 .]On
January 3 1957 , he was appointed by Oregon GovernorElmo Smith to theOregon Supreme Court to replaceWalter L. Tooze who had died in office. [http://bluebook.state.or.us/state/elections/elections24.htm Oregon Blue Book: Oregon Governors.] Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved onFebruary 3 2008 .] [http://www.bluebook.state.or.us/state/elections/elections27.htm Oregon Blue Book: Supreme Court Justices of Oregon.] Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved onFebruary 3 2008 .] Kester served on the court untilMarch 1 1958 when he resigned from the bench. He resigned in order to become the general solicitor for Union Pacific’s legal department in the Pacific Northwest.While working for UP in 1972 he filed briefs in support of the lower court’s decision in the
Supreme Court of the United States case "Port of Portland v. United States " in a decision regardinginterstate commerce . ["Port of Portland v. United States", ussc|408|811|1972] Then in 1980 Kester retired from Union Pacific and went back to his old firm. From 1986 to 1987 he was president of theCity Club of Portland . [ [http://www.pdxcityclub.org/club-info/history.php City Club's History.] City Club of Portland. Retrieved onFebruary 3 2008 .] He currently is a senior partner for Cosgrave Vergeer Kester. As of January 2006 at the age of 89 he was believed to be the oldest lawyer inOregon still practicing law. [Robben, Janine. [http://www.osbar.org/publications/bulletin/06jan/retirement.html When to Retire?] "Oregon State Bar Bulletein", January 2006.]Works authored
*The War Industries Board, 1917-1918; A Study in Industrial Mobilization. The American Political Science Review, Vol. 34, No. 4. (Aug., 1940).
*The First duty: a history of the U.S. District Court for Oregon. Portland, Or: U.S. District Court of Oregon Historical Society, (1993), contributor.References
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