James L. Oakes

James L. Oakes (born February 21, 1924 in Springfield , Illinois - † October 13, 2007 in Martha's Vineyard , Massachusetts ) was a Senior Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit .

Life

James Lowell Oakes was born in Springfield, Illinois. Oakes attended Harvard College and Harvard Law School , graduating cum laude in 1947 . After graduation, he worked as a trainee lawyer for Second Circuit Court Judge Harrie B. Chase . He had a private law firm in San Francisco California from 1948 to 1949 . He then moved to Brattleboro , where he also ran a law firm from 1950 to 1966. He was a member of the Vermont Senate from 1961 to 1965 and Vermont Attorney General from 1967 to 1969.

In 1970 he was nominated for a seat in the United States District Court for the District of Vermont by President Richard Nixon . This was vacant after the death of Ernest Gibson junior . A year later, in 1971, Nixon appointed Oakes a judge on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. He was confirmed a short time later and served as a judge on that court for 35 years. From 1988 to 1992 as Chief Judge . He achieved senior status in 1992. He was succeeded by Fred I. Parker .

Oakes served on the Vermont Law School Board of Trustees from 1976 to 1994 .

His decisions have helped shape Vermont's role in developing environmental law, including through his work on the Conservation Society of Southern Vermont v. Volpe (the Route 7 case) and Southview Associates v. Bongartz (the Deeryard case).

He was married three times and had three children from his first marriage. James L. Oakes died on October 13, 2007 on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Web links

• Federal Judical Center , entry for James L. Oakes