Speeches, Interviews, & Writing

Unknown Speaker I hope you all have a wonderful afternoon the meeting is adjourned. And Unknown Speaker you’re watching c spans America and the courts. Next associate Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor helps dedicated new building at the University of Oregon law school and Eugene defense about 25 minutes. Unknown Speaker It is rare that a speaker so perfectly fits the occasion, as does our speaker in this dedication. As we dedicate to Wm W. Night Law Center, we do so building on a legacy of qualities that we aim to carry into the future. qualities that have served our state so well, and qualities that will continue we hope to do so. There are many but I think particularly of three that are most applicable today, a pioneering session spirit of boldness in thought and action, and a wisdom that is deep and lasting in its vision. Since our beginnings as Law School of the West, the University of Oregon School of Law has worked hard to be at the forefront of legal needs and new areas of practice, not content simply to follow, we have aim to lead and to prepare legal practitioners to do the same. Along with this pioneering leadership, we’ve encouraged the boldness of thought and action, and ability to move beyond the ordinary two ways and means of achievements not yet considered, let alone practice. This has been a Center for Public Service and law reform. And we’ve encouraged and nurtured a worldview that sees beyond letters to the words beyond words to the entire text, beyond

Thank you, President Merton, the Honorable Ed mace, and my fellow honorary degree recipients.

Now first of all, we have find out what are these privileges a permanent they are to President Merton. I keep hearing that, and I haven’t quite figured that out. It is an enormous pleasure to be here today at George Mason University. After all, it’s a day of joy for everyone. You graduates have no more University exams or classes to endure. And I might say the faculty no longer has you to endure. You have you have fame and fortune ahead of you, your family, spouses and friends can look forward to seeing more of you. And your speaker has the rest. But from her labor’s up on Capitol Hill, so it’s quite a day. Now, I realize we’ve gathered here today to applaud those of you who are receiving degrees. But there are a few other people here today who should also be recognized and with whom you graduates probably would like to share your glory. I refer, of course to the parents, spouses or other family members who have made some significant contributions to your presence here today. First of all, your parents have the brains which you were lucky enough to inherit. And your family probably provided at least some of the money you needed to sustain yourself while you were here. So I congratulate your families and command you graduates for your good judgment in selecting them. Now, a commencement speech is a particularly difficult assignment. The speaker is given no topic and is expected to be

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank Thanks. Thank you so much. What a special day this is for all of your honorees and how happy I am to be in the company today with such a remarkable group of women honorees, I can’t imagine a better group and I have sat today fascinated with every single one of them and everything they had to say. I’ve heard how special this event always is. And I’ve not been able to attend all these luncheons, but I think I’m gonna have to come back because I grew up as a cowgirl in the southwest. And I learned out there that the only thing that mattered was whether you could lend a hand and do it well. It didn’t matter whether you were black, white, or brown, male or female, young or old, you’re just had to do your job. And it was a place where everything around you could hurt you. If you didn’t watch out. You could run into a rattlesnake. You shook your shoes out to get rid of the scorpions. Every time you fell off your horse, you were in danger of falling into a cactus. I mean everything out there could bite, prick, tear, cut, or whatever it was. And all I ever wanted to be was a cattle rancher. That was all I knew. My grandparents had done the same, and my family. And it’s been a long road from that dry, barren Southwest cattle ranch, to the marble courtroom, where I often find myself sitting today. It’s been a very long and often a very hard road for women lawyers, since Margaret brand became the first woman

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you President, Bill Paul, and the Lord Chief Justice Harry volts my friend from even before my days on the Supreme Court, and Lord justice Norse, it’s good to see you again. And to see all of the members and brands of the American Bar Association, who were able to come to this remarkable place today. I don’t know about you. But when I walked today, across this Meadow to this historic spot, I was deeply moved. This Bob resonates with historical significance to everyone here today. And every citizen of the United states and of the United Kingdom, and indeed far beyond the boundaries of those two nations. And it’s a wonderful privilege to speak today in commemoration of one of the most momentous occasions in legal history. In many ways, the story of English liberties, and therefore the story of American liberties began on this very meadow, when King john affix the Great Seal of the realm to the Magna Carta. In truth, the grievances of the barons who impelled King john to come here in June of that year, were rather mundane concerns the barons were generally unlettered and self interested man, who sought practical concessions from the king and return for their allegiance to the crown. The Magna Carta bottom is an intensely practical document. tailored to the problems of feudal times, spelling out one by one concrete remedies or actual abuses. But in addressing the specific grievances, the great chart or use language that transcended the barons parochial

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you so much, Mr. Anderson. And Acting Deputy Administrator bib and Mr. Kiss Delaney and my friend Bill IV. Now, they’ve already said everything I was going to say to you. So I’m a little bit of trouble. You know, there are about 370 federal courthouses in the United States. And there have been, as I count them, about 60 funding requests for new federal courthouse construction, actually approved by Congress in the brief period from 1986 to 2001. That’s a lot of courthouses, when you think they’re only 370 to begin with. And those funding requests total, by my calculation, about 501 million or half a billion dollars. Each of these projects has required architectural engineering, design, and other construction expertise, expertise of all kinds, which will be recognized today. I don’t know about you, I’m not talking to the architects now, because you probably already think this. But I place a very high value on architectural services. I care about my surroundings, whether it’s my home, or where I work, I feel better, and I work better. If I’m in a place that I think is handsome, and that I enjoy, it makes a real difference to me. I suspect it makes a real difference to everybody. And I think that good design matters in courthouses and elsewhere. It must, of course, accommodate the basic functional needs of the structure in a courthouse, that means court rooms. And I have to say they’re pretty know by and large these days, maybe you can figure out something

Unknown Speaker Justice Sandra Day O’Connor is next. She recently spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony of New York University Law Schools new building in Manhattan. She reflected on the American spirit after seeing the ruins of the World Trade Center. Unknown Speaker When we scheduled this event, there was only one person our community wanted to deliver the principal address. Remember the faculty lunch at which she spoke to us that stimulated the idea for a conference that just the other day as we celebrated the success of the global law school initiative, was referred to as the seminal intellectual event of that program, now widely recognized as having transformed all of legal education, not just this law school. But Justice Sandra Day O’Connor didn’t just do that one act of beneficence to this school. She has been an integral part of this law school community at every turn. She has visited our campus during my time as Dean, this is now I think, her seventh time. And every time she comes, she meets with faculty as she will today. She meets with students as she will today. And she enhances our world. But equally, she’s been there as counselor and advisor throughout the evolution of this law school. There is no one outside of the immediate law school community, who is a great friend to this law school, and Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. And I’m delighted to introduce her to you today. Justice O’Connor. Unknown Speaker Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Unknown Speaker

Sandra Day O’Connor Now on the whole, the United States judicial system leaves a favorable impression around the world, but in the treatment and United States Courts of international law there jury is still out. Because of my exposure to a great many legal systems around the world. I decided to speak to you today about the need for more knowledge about international law and transnational law. Why does information about international law matters so much? Why should judges and lawyers who are concerned about the intricacies of ERISA and the Americans with Disabilities Act and the bankruptcy code, care about issues of foreign law, and international and transnational law? The reason of course is globalization. No institution of government can now afford to ignore the rest of the world. The importance of globalization should not be underestimated. 30% of our gross domestic product is internationally derived. We operate today under a large array of international agreements and organizations, the UN Convention on contracts for the International sale of goods. NAFTA, the World Trade Organization, the Hague conventions on collection of evidence abroad and service of process. And the New York convention on horsemen of arbitrage rewards dimension only a few. But globalization is much more than these agreements and organizations. It also represents a greater awareness of and access to people, some places are different from our own. The fates of nations are more closely intertwined than

Student Sandra Day O’Connor Associate Justice was born in El Paso, Texas, March 26 1930. She married John D. O’Connor III in 1952 and has three sons, Scott, Bryan, and Jay. She received her BA and LLB from Stanford University. She served as deputy county attorney of San Mateo County, California for 1952-53 and as a civilian attorney for Quartermaster market center in Frankfurt, Germany, from 1954 through 57. From 1958 through 60. She practiced law in Maryvale, Arizona and served as Assistant Attorney General of Arizona from 1965 to 69. She was appointed to the Arizona State Senate in 1969 and was subsequently reelected to two two-year terms. In 1975, she was elected judge of the Maricopa County Superior Court and served until 1979 when she was appointed to the Arizona Court of Appeals. President Reagan nominated her as an Associate Justice at the Supreme Court, and she took her seat on September 25, 1981. It’s my pleasure to introduce to you, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Sandra Day O’Connor All right. Thank you so much. Thank you. This is a really special day for me. Can you imagine driving up to a beautiful new facility like this and seeing your name engraved across the front? It’s quite a thrill. And I can think of no more welcome honor than that which you have bestowed on me to have this beautiful new high school bear my name. I grew up on a cattle ranch in southeastern Arizona. When I was born, my mother wanted to go to a hospital and her parents were living in El Paso.

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you. Now first of all, we have to get everybody seated, ’cause I’m going to be at this for a while there’s a chair there and there’s one over there. Need to there’s another one here. But I’m to work, right. So it’s Law Day today, May 1. May 1 was celebrated in the former Soviet Union as a day to remember the ascendancy of the Communist Party there. And perhaps it was in reaction to that, that we started celebrating May 1 as Law Day in this country. And it’s become a day that we care about, at least in the legal profession we do. And I hope other citizens do too, because it does give us an opportunity to talk about the role of law in our society, the role of courts and a fair judicial system. And that’s what I’m involved in, in my work today. And it didn’t start out that way. I was told you might like to know how I started out. I grew up on a cattle ranch in the dry, arid Southwest, it was half in Arizona and half a New Mexico we straddle the state line. And the ranch was quite remote we were 35 miles from and it was a life built around the small group of people who ran the ranch my parents and the people who were there. And we were not many in numbers. And the people who work there, the Cowboys tended to be single man who spent their whole lives there. We had at least four who stayed until their ultimate death as old man and spent respectively something like 70 years, they’re over 50 in three other cases.

So it was a small knit group that tried to

William Rehnquist Good afternoon. It’s my pleasure to welcome you to the groundbreaking ceremony for the modernization of the Supreme Court building 72 years ago in the spring of 1931, the work of digging the foundation for our beautiful building began. Four years later, on April 4 1935, the building was completed. The total cost, including furnishings was less than $10 million. And it came in under budget, with almost $100,000 returned to the Treasury. The runner vision project for which we break ground today is scheduled to take five years, and it cost 120 $2 million. when it’s completed, I hope that we will again be returning funds to the Treasury, but I’m not betting on it. William Howard Taft, who served as Chief Justice from 1921 to 1930, was the moving force behind constructing a separate building for the court. Although he did not live long enough to see it completed. Until this building open, the court did not have a home of its own. From 1800 and one until 1935. It occupied cramped quarters across the street in the capital, very much at the sufferance of Congress. And most justices worked out of their homes. having its own building was a great symbolic importance to the court. The building has been Captain excellent repair, and looks as beautiful today as when I first saw it, February of 1952. But after nearly 70 years, it’s overdue for renovation. I would like to thank the members of the courts building committee, particularly Justice O’Connor, who chairs the committee,

John Street Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in honoring the 2003 recipient of the Philadelphia Liberty metal. United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day. Oh, Sandra Day O’Connor, a great American who has demonstrated leadership and vision and carriage in the pursuit of liberty. John Street Justice O’Connor, we are proud to welcome you to our city, and our Sunoco, welcome America celebration. We are particularly pleased to present you with the Philadelphia Liberty medal on this awesome and historic location, the opening of this spectacular National Constitution Center. Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you, Mayor Street and thank all of you here today for joining in this absolutely wonderful occasion, as we celebrate both our nation’s birthday and the opening of the National Constitution Center here in the great city of Philadelphia.

The Constitution Center and independent Hall, together with the Liberty Bell, form a place that every American should visit. It will contribute each and every day to the reinforcement of the basic principles that bind us together as a nation and a people. And Joe Torsella, thank you so much for your perseverance, and for reminding us today that even supreme court justices make mistakes.

On May 25, 1787, here in Philadelphia, a quorum of delegates from seven states met in answer to the call from the Annapolis Convention to draft what became the Constitution of the United States. The delegates unanimously selected George Washington as president

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you, Audrey, Kelly, for your wonderful presentations today. And what a delight it is for me to be here when you receive the Sandra Day O’Connor award that you participated and establishing 10 years ago. It’s great and to be and to be present. When so many of the previous Sandra Day O’Connor award winners could be here. And what a wonderful group have been selected. The Philadelphia Bar Association has been particularly kind to the female division of the United States Supreme Court. I’m truly delighted that you’ve established now an annual justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg legal writing award, it is exceedingly appropriate because Justice Ginsburg rights with a very, and I careful and no one among us doesn’t matter. So it’s a real special treat to be here today with Justice Ginsburg, as that effort is launched. And on hand, usually at your special events in Philadelphia is judge Norma Schapiro over here at the table today, whose career here in Philadelphia has spanned more than five remarkable decades. She has said that one of her favorite quotations is from the ancient Roman official Gaius who poignantly noted that one who helps the wandering traveler does as it were, light another’s lamp by their own, and it gives no less light because it helped another. And as the first woman appointed to the United States District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, her live show in dark corners where women never before had traveled. And she has led her light

Host If our guest of honor has often defied the odds, so too, she has resisted those who would put a label on her judicial philosophy for labels for cans, not coalition builders. for 23 years, she has demonstrated a rugged individualism reminiscent of the Arizona frontier of her girlhood belonging to no quick or ideological camp, as committed to the separation of powers as Publius as suspicious of judge made war as homes. officiating at a wedding in 1931. Justice Benjamin Cardozo’s spoke of quote, three grades mysteries in the lives of mortal beings, the mystery of birth at the beginning, the mystery of death at the end, and greater than either the mystery of love. Everything that is most precious in life is a form of love. Art is a form of love, if it be Noble. Labor is a form of love, if it be worthy. Thought is a form of love, it be inspired the art of jurisprudence, the labor of legal interpretation, the thought of a lifetime devoted to justice in the spirit of Cardozo, and the tradition of homes. It is no mystery by the Center for the Study of the presidency, should present the 2004 police award to Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, whose wall the wall is inseparable from her passion for justice. Congratulations. Sandra Day O’Connor That was quite an introduction. I wish the Cowboys could have heard that. Back at the lazy BR Richard Norton Smith is a wonderful historian and john and i were first privileged to meet him at the Ronald Reagan library. And it’s fun to hear him speak

This is a reading from a sermon delivered in 1630 by the Pilgrim leader, John Winthrop, who was aboard the ship The Arabella on his way from England to the Massachusetts Bay colony. The city on the hill passage was referenced by President Reagan in several notable speeches.

Now, the only way to provide for our posterity is to follow the council of Micah, to do justly, to walk humbly with our god. We must delight in each other. Make others’ conditions our own, rejoice together. Mourn together. Labor and suffer together. Always having before our eyes our commission and community in the work as members of the same body. The Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell among us as his own people. For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause him to withdraw his present help from us, we shall be made a story and a byword through the world.

Unknown Speaker Thank you very much. Now, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. In June, she received the Jefferson award by the American Institute for Public Service. In 1972, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was one of three founders of the Institute, which called their Jefferson awards, a Nobel Prize for public and community service. Justice O’Connor was introduced by Charles Bartlett, the friend of the Kennedy family. Unknown Speaker I take great pleasure being given the honor of making this award, the greatest public service by an elected or appointed official, because in all years, we’ve been giving this award and are now quite a number of those years. I can never remember an award. When that was more appropriate than this one. I feel very strongly I come to this podium with great gusto. Because I think that Sandra Day O’Connor and her husband have brought to this town, a spirit that didn’t have before a liveliness, and a sense of participation, which is really invigorated this capital had been very important to us in worship. Unknown Speaker She gave us a little of her background and a very good sense that she’s actually romanticized her background in a marvelous book, which I hope all of you will read called lazy be lazy business story of her young life on this ranch, and beautiful part of the West. And in this book, we sort of feel that she got a special learning experience from a black cow hand name rosters. She describes him as a man without schooling, but a master on the range,

President Hennessy, faculty, graduates and friends of Leland Stanford Jr. University: It is a great pleasure to be with you today at your commencement exercises. After all, it is a day of joy for everyone: You graduates have no more exams or classes to endure. And I might say, the faculty no longer has you to endure; you have fame and fortune ahead of you; your families and spouses and friends can look forward to seeing more of you; and your speaker is greatly honored by the privilege of being with you today as a speaker at your commencement.

I realize we have gathered here today to applaud those of you who will be receiving degrees. I suggest, however, that there are several heroes and heroines here today who should be recognized and with whom you graduates would like to share your glory. I refer, of course, to the parents, who have made two significant contributions to your presence today. First, they had the brains that you were lucky enough to inherit and, secondly, they probably provided at least some of the money you needed to sustain yourselves while you were here. I congratulate your parents, and I commend you graduates for your good judgment in selecting them.

A commencement speech is a particularly difficult assignment. The speaker is given no topic and is expected to be able to inspire all the graduates with a stirring speech about nothing at all. I suppose that’s why so many lawyers are asked to be commencement speakers; they’?re in the habit of talking extensively

Sandra Day O’Connor
Thank you, Tom. And what a pleasure it is to be back here at Chautaqua. This such a special place, tucked under Lake Erie and along our border with Canada. The United States has only two next-door neighbors, Canada, and Mexico. I lived most of my life closer to the Mexican side of our border. I was born in El Paso, Texas and grew up on a ranch. And it was mostly in Arizona, and partly in New Mexico. And it’s a far cry from the shores of Lake Erie and Lake Chautaqua to that dry, semi-arid desert where I spent my early years.

When I first moved from Arizona to Washington, DC, John and I lived in an apartment in the Watergate that was kindly secured for us by my colleague Justice Lewis Powell as a temporary residence. We could look out our window, a view of a splendid statue of President Benito Juarez of Mexico, the former president. It’s inscribed with his words, “Respect for the rights of others is peace.” President Juarez has a place in Mexico’s pantheon of heroes, just as President Abraham Lincoln has in ours.

I thought of these two men as I reviewed one of the themes you’ve been considering this week, that human progress and human violence have been linked historical forces. In the 1860s, both these leaders, Juarez and Lincoln, led their countries out of violence and deadly conflict. Mexico faced a threat from outside in the form of the French intervention led by Napoleon [III]. The United States faced a threat from within. Now, having led their young

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you Dean Atlanta so much. Thank you. Thank you. His Eminence Cardinal McCarrick, President there, joi de Dana Lana cough and Dean Emeritus Judy or bream, and faculty, students and friends of Georgetown University Law Center. This is a very happy occasion indeed. And I’m glad that as a neighbor, I was invited to come over and share this day with you. Georgetown University Law Center is our nation’s largest law school. consolidating its broad and international law programs under one roof in the new Eric EO tongue, international law building the generosity of ambassador and Mrs. How tongue has made this possible. This law school, which is located in our nation’s capital, already has one of the most comprehensive international and comparative law programs in the world. It has at least 22 talented faculty members focused on these areas. Students from at least 71 countries are enrolled here in the International Programs. alumni of this law school live all across the globe. And as you’ve heard from the dean, the law school is already home to many many diverse programs in the international area, in short, Georgia. University Law Center is now situated to be the leading global Law Center in this country and perhaps in the world. No wonder this is a special day. International Law has emerged in ways that affect all courts here and abroad. The reason is globalization. It’s important should not be underestimated. 30% or more of our gross domestic product is internationa

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you, President Gray. I appreciate that so much. And thanks for letting me be part of the effort today. I think my interest in this came about because of my years as a trial court judge and dealing with jurors in a great mini criminal as well as civil cases. And the jury system in this country is one of the most enduring aspects of our legal system as a whole. And the only time that most Americans other than lawyers and letting them see the inside of an actual courtroom is when they’re called to serve as jurors and juries have a proud history in this country as well as in England, where the jury as we know, developed today, Great Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. Continue to use juries to hear evidence and determine facts. In a great many criminal cases. All only the United States and New Zealand continue to require use of juries in most civil cases. So it’s a shrinking universe out there. The Russian Federation is experimenting with the use of juries in serious criminal cases. And that seems to be expanding now to all parts of the Russian Federation. I think juries usually their do their jobs very well and occasionally show extraordinary courage in the face of hostile judges, perhaps, and try to deliver the verdict that justice demands, even if it might not be the one that the judge might want. I presided over many a trial and in all but two or three cases, I felt that the jury reached an entirely Appropriate verdict. And

Host Like President Truman, you can call her a liberal on some issues, and you can call her a conservative on others. However, it is clear that she has enabled the High Court to continue its role in the racial integration of our society, and the recognition of gender equality, and in protection of fundamental rights of expression, political participation, and due process of law. And therefore, Justice O’Connor, it is my pleasure to award you the 2005 Harry Truman Good Neighbor award. Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you so much indeed. This is an award that means a great deal to me. It’s a wonderful experience to be here as the recipient of the Harry Good Neighbor award. I have on my desk at the court, a little wooden piece that I bought at the Truman library, when I first visited it when Mr. celebre senior over here was was heading that and it says the buck stops here. And I have proudly had that at my desk as President Harry Truman developed it and had it and he is and President Truman. His reputation, and his legacy has only grown and strengthened with the passage of time. He liked to say he did his best and he did his best throughout his seven years as president from 1945 to 1952. He had to preside over an apprehensive a nation in the midst of a tumultuous world. Soon after, he took over as president World War Two and with the surrender of Germany and 45. the surrender of Japan later at that same year, when the Soviet Union began expanding communist regimes in Eastern Europe and

Host And that is very high praise from him. Maybe growing up in the arid West now draws you to its waters. In appreciation for all that you have done for us and for the nation. We offer you a small token of appreciation and hope that the waters of the West will bring you back to us in the years to come. Justice O’Connor, thank you. And our, the gift is a fly box, inscribed, “Presented to Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, with appreciation, from your friends in the Ninth Circuit, July 21, 2005.”

Sandra Day O’Connor But what’s in it? Aha. All right. Now this looks like some serious fishing flies that I will very much enjoy trying to put to use with better luck than I had on Tuesday. And it’s a perfectly wonderful box and the flies look great. And I can’t imagine a better thing for you to leave with me to tempt me to come back many times. Ninth Circuit territory. Host Thank you judge–

Sandra Day O’Connor Now they’re gonna make me go to work. Host Thank you, Judge levy. Justice O’Connor. Your announcement took us all by surprise. Was it a difficult decision for you? Sandra Day O’Connor Yes. Yes. It’s been such a privilege to serve on the Supreme Court. When I was little, I always wanted to work. I wanted to work at some kind of work worth doing. Something where the individual effort put in would make a difference. And I was so privileged to serve 24 years at work that fitted that category very well. And then some. So I was lucky to have it. Host Judge Marilyn huff who was the former

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you. That’s a great idea. I don’t know what could matter more in a community than the library. As all of you probably already know I grew up on a ranch in a very remote part of Arizona, half of the ranch was in New Mexico. The ranch straddled the state line. But the house was physically in Arizona. Most of the road from the highway was in New Mexico. But then it circled back into Arizona and that’s where I grew up. We were between Duncan, Arizona, and Lordsburg, New Mexico. About 30 miles from town either way. We didn’t go to town often in those days, and the ranch was sparse and dry. You know what the Arizona high desert country is like. And it’s full of everything that has teeth or claws or sharp spines — something to hurt you. And you learned early on to be a little bit careful about where you stepped and walked and rode and how you handled things. That can stand you in good stead through life, I think, is you have to walk through the bramble bushes of life. But my friends in my early years were books. I didn’t have siblings until about 10 years after my birth. And my friends were my parents and the cowboys who lived there at the ranch. And books. And I loved to read from early on. It meant so much to me. And that’s why I guess I have an affinity for libraries and why the invitation of the Scottsdale public library was a welcome one. I’ve not had a lot of time to write just for the sake of writing.

My bookshelves in my home are lined with something

Sandra Day O’Connor
I want to thank the American Bar Association for all of the important work that it does to promote the rule of law and for convening this really important meeting to advance that cause. Now why? It’s because the rule of law offers a basic guarantee of good government, of fair treatment and accountability. And these are the building blocks for a society that can effectively protect its citizens and help them reach their own potential. The discussions held here have underscored the urgency of promoting the rule of law, not just to realize the human potential, but also as part of an effective strategy to address some pressing social problems.
We have some critical challenges: combating terrorism, combating corruption, poverty, and the threat of pandemics. And all of these would be alleviated, in part, by a rule of law movement. But this can’t be a project of just one organization, or one profession, or one country. I think each of us has a stake in the rule of law, and we have to work together toward the goal. No one country has all the answers, certainly our country does not. You’ve learned that in the United States, there are current threats to the independence of our judiciary and the rule of law. And I think there are problems in most countries in that regard. So one of the important contributions that this gathering has made has been bringing together a wide range of different stakeholders in the concept of the rule of law, from the private sector, from

Sandra Day O’Connor Well, President Ruiz that was quite a presentation indeed. And accolades, compliments from one’s peers, my fellow women judges are the ones that are most appreciated, as you know. And I’m just overwhelmed by all the kindness that you have shown tonight in hosting this great reception and expressing in such generous terms. Your appreciation, I remember so well, when Joan Dempsey climb, then a judge in California decided to get this organization going. And I promptly joined, not having any idea at the time that it would grow as it has, perhaps it would not have done so had not President Ronald Reagan decided, I thought rather courageously to put a woman on the Supreme Court. He campaigned, as you pointed out, saying he wouldn’t do it. And his action opens so many doors for women not only in this country but around the world. I remember so well, the day he called me and after I left the interview in his office, I think he did talk to some other people and I left that office and flew back to Arizona that day, and breathed a big sigh of relief. I was interested to obscene the Oval Office and to met with the president and some of his advisors and I said to myself, thank goodness, I don’t have to go to Washington and do that job. I really did not imagine that I would be at I mean, my classmate at Stanford, William Rehnquist, was already a member of the court. And I couldn’t imagine that that would happen. But it did. And I had to take a lot of deep breaths to decide.

Host So join me in welcoming the honorable Sandra Day O’Connor. Sandra Day O’Connor Come on. No, no. No. I agreed to be part of this Voluntary Group, as a part of the Advisory Council for this effort, because of my absolute conviction that we have to educate all of our young people on how democracies function. What do we mean when we talk about rule of law? How do citizens have the capacity? And do they have a duty to protect? The pay and how to do it? If we don’t do this, it won’t take more than three or four years before we will have created such a gap in the capacity and willingness of our citizens to be good citizens, that our country will take a major decline. There is no question that we have to do precisely the activity that this effort is all about. We have to teach every succeeding generation of young people what it is ourselves. system of government consists of our works, how they can be part of it, and why they should be part of it.

Now, it isn’t easy to do this. My co-honorary chair here, Governor Romer, runs about the second largest school district in the country. And he knows exactly what the problems are. But you see, this knowledge about how we function in this country isn’t handed down through the gene pool. Every generation has to learn it. And we who are older have to be responsible for teaching. I mean, it’s that simple. But you have to teach it in ways that will engage the students. We have maybe a more sophisticated student group and in my day, where

Sandra Day O’Connor I would be willing to add a comment about what Leon Panetta has just expressed so well. We’ve said in the report that we agree with the goal of U.S. policy in Iraq, as stated by the president: an Iraq that can govern itself, sustain itself and defend itself. And to do that, we’ve made these various recommendations on a consensus basis.

It’s my belief that if a large segment of our country gets behind that, on a consensus basis, that it’s very likely we can move forward and make some progress toward that statement of goals.

And this is not an ongoing commission. It really is out of our hands, having done what we did. It’s up to you, frankly. You are the people who speak to the American people. You’re there interpreting this and talking to America. And I hope that the American people will feel that if they are behind something in broad terms, that we’ll be better off. I think we will, and I hope, in general, others think so, too.

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you, Governor Page. Thank you. Thank you. Sandra Day O’Connor This is a great occasion. The volunteers, some 2000 of them, have been working for more than two years to make this weekend the incredible event that it is. And they’ve done a great job. We celebrate Jamestown’s 400th anniversary because that very difficult settlement gave us our start in representative democracy. It caused us to be an English-speaking nation. It brought to the shores our first venture capitalists, they came to try to make money. And I guess you could call it the start of a global economy. And most important to me, those settlers brought with them the rule of law, they brought the common law of Great Britain. That’s what the charter told them to bring with them. And they did. And that has lasted. And we are so grateful. And it is such an honor for this celebration, to have a visit today from the President of the United States and Mrs. Bush. This is truly special. When the planners started their plans, they said in our wildest dreams, we hope we will have the Queen of England return. And we hope the President and Mrs. Bush will come. And lo and behold, they’re here. And it is my enormous honor to present to you, the President of the United States.

Unknown Speaker So Connor, Sandra Day O’Connor don’t do that. Thank you very much. Governor Napolitano is doing an outstanding job in my home state. And I was so appreciative when, as chairman of this group, she agreed that I could have a few words with you this morning. And that Tom Phillips, the former Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, could also be part of this package and we hope to be brief and our remarks so that we might spend some time answering questions if there are some and Governor Granholm you’re a great hostess. I had not previously been to the Northern part of Michigan and it’s beautiful. It’s been such a treat to glimpse Traverse City and the surroundings. I just, it’s so enchanting, I hope to come back. Now, it’s Elementary, high school civics that we have three branches of government, not just governors and not just legislators. And they regulate each other by a very intricate system of checks and balances. And the main check the judicial branch has on the others is the power to declare statutes or executive acts unconstitutional. Although sometimes judges might check the political branches in a softer way merely by interpreting a statute in light of constitutional values, or by ruling that a regulation or executive act is not authorized by statute, but whatever courts do, the courts have the power to make The president or Congress, or a governor or a state legislature, really, really angry. In fact, if judges do not make the man some of the time,

Stewart Schwab Good afternoon. Thank you for joining us today for Cornell University’s second annual Milton Konvitz Memorial Lecture. I’m Stewart Schwab, the Allan R. Tessler Dean of Cornell law school. And I have the distinct honor to serve as your moderator for this unique and special occasion. thanks to the generosity of Dr. Irwin Jacobs, who received his engineering degree here in 1954. And this is Joan Jacobs, who received her degree also in 1954. From Human Ecology, the Milton our convicts, visiting lectureship and American ideals honors the spirit of Professor Milton our convicts, and especially his theoretically rich and diverse American ideals course. The purpose of their gift is to bring a prominent expert in American democratic thought, ethics or political philosophy to campus to speak to the Cornell community. Both the law school and the IR school are proud to count Professor Milton comets as a former prominent faculty member. Professor conference was a founding member of the ILR school and also held a joint appointment and was a vital member of the law school faculty. But Professor conferences legendary reputation at Cornell stems in significant part from the fact that more than 8000 students university wide were students in his American ideals course from 1946 to 1973. In this course, undergraduates examine the writings and teachings of the great intellectual thinkers and philosophy Throughout history and throughout the world, who shaped American democratic values?

Thank you. Thank you very much. That was a wonderful introduction. You even found things I didn’t know. What is this nixon tape business? I have to find out about that.

Sandra Day O’Connor yeah. I’m going to have to find out more about that. Now, I’m so glad to be at hyde park. It is my first visit to this place. And I know part of the wallace family, and I think david douglas is sitting right there. And they helped make this facility possible, chi think is marvelous. I’m so glad to see that. Tomorrow I look forward to seeing the other parts of hyde park in the daylight hours. And my parents were cattle ranchers, as you have heard. Many of the cattle ranchers, at least in the southwest did not approve of franklin roosevelt’s policies at all. Quite the contrary. They didn’t approve of eleanor roosevelt either. I’m not sure why, but they didn’t. And when I was a child, we didn’t have a a school near the ranch, and I was sent off to el paso texas where I lived with a grandmother to go to school. And went to this school for girls. The head mistress, dr. Lucinda temp lynn invited ell minor roosevelt to come to the school, and eleanor roosevelt accepted. And all of us were supposed to clean up and be out by the flag pole, waiting for eleanor roosevelt to arrive. Ki remember to this day all of us being out there waiting and here — I did not dare tell my parents. [laughter] and of course I realized I couldn’t possibly like her. And so we all stood out by the flag pole, and the black

Sandra Day O’Connor Good morning. And Thank you Dean olenicoff for once again, letting us have a meeting here at this distinguished law school. And thank each and every one of you in this room for being part of this today. We’ve talked for two years previously about aspects of the importance of an independent judiciary. And we’ve narrowed the focus of this year’s conference to take a look at business and corporations in their role in the maintenance of an independent judiciary. And I think that corporations and businesses are in a special position by virtue of their economic importance in our country. And we’re surely focused on that these days, you matter? And we need to know what will help make our system recover quickly and do well. Corporations stand to lose large amounts if in judicial independence waivers or if we have methods of resolving disputes that are not fair and effective. And there are a number of ways in which businesses view the current court situation as a failure. Some see runaway juries creating unpredictability, some see litigation delay and expensive discovery processes that greatly increase the cost and time of litigation. And the judiciary possibly is increasingly made up of judges, younger, who lack experience with complex business issues. And these are real concerns that need to be addressed. And there’s not total satisfaction with alternative dispute resolution either. So we’re going to talk about all of these factors. And these are concerns. And that’s

Sandra Day O’Connor I have to tell one little story, though, about William French Smith, a man– Ken Starr This is your conversation. Sandra Day O’Connor But you weren’t quite finished, Ken Starr Please. Sandra Day O’Connor When I got out of Stanford Law School, it was back in the middle of the last century, long before any of your students had been born. This is why I got out of law school in 1952. And there were all these notices on the placement bulletin board at the law school Stanford Law graduates call our law firm, we want to talk to you. Well, I called every one on the bulletin. board, and not one of them would give me an interview. Not one. Well, I knew a young woman at Stanford as an undergrad, whose father was it gives them down on cracker. He was one of the warriors. And I said, talk to your dad, see if he’ll get me an interview with Gibson Dunn. And she did. And he did. And I made the trip down to Gibson Dunn on crusher in Los Angeles, and met with this distinguished looking lawyer and we talked to me, Oh Miss Day, you have a fine resume here to stay. But Miss Day, this firm has never hired a woman lawyer. And I do not see that time when we will. Our clients would not stand for it. Well, I looked sort of stricken, I’m sure. So he said, well, Miss Day, how well do you type? And I said, well, so so and he said if you can type well enough, we might be able to get you on here as a legal secretary. But I declined that opportunity. I must say that I was home in Arizona

Sandra Day O’Connor Thank you so much. Thank you, Richard. Now, this is a surprising and daunting effort for me I’m just an unemployed cowgirl at present. And so there’s little chance that I’ll be able to state for you, oh, the meaning of life. 58 years ago, I graduated from this wonderful university. There were good many times during my years here, and that I attended services at this magnificent Stanford chapel. But I never expected to speak from this podium. And we’re gathered here this evening to remember and honor a Stanford professor who played a pivotal role in my life. And I think that of many others. The late Harry Rathbun. As you heard, I grew up on a family cattle ranch in an arid and remote part of southern Arizona and New Mexico. It was about 35 miles from the nearest town. My early companions were my parents, and five or six cowboys. My parents like to read so books also became my companions at the ranch. We were ranchers, we didn’t know lawyers and judges. My father had wanted to attend Stanford. But when he graduated from high school, his parents died soon after. And he was sent out to the Lazy B ranch to keep things going until his parents estate could be settled. That took close to 20 years. And he never left the Lazy B ranch. He never attended Stanford. I probably thought about Stanford because of my father’s admiration for it. I was sent away to El Paso, Texas to go to grade school and high school. I lived with my maternal grandmother. The only university

Sandra Day O’Connor Lieutenant Governor do Hurst and members of the Texas Senate senator staffer, Amy, and all of you present here today, it is truly have a tremendous honor for me to be here and to have you extend this honor to me and give me a few minutes. I won’t take many to speak to you today. I know how tough it is to be in a state senate. When I was in the Arizona State Senate, as Majority Leader, we had a majority of one. So we had an ticklish time, trying to get support for some of the measures that we had. But we managed to get bipartisan agreement on many things. And it was very satisfying to work in the State Senate in those years. And I appreciate it back chance. And I appreciate the time chance to be here. You’ve already heard I have strong El Paso links. I went to Radford as a grade school and then off to Stephen F. Austin High School in El Paso, which is still bear, I visited it several times, and it hasn’t changed. But the student body has changed, if I think today predominantly Hispanic, and it was not when I attended Austin high, but it’s still a fine High School and much fun to visit. I was motivated to step down from the Supreme Court, when my husband who suffers from Alzheimer’s had reached the stage that he really needed full time care. And that happens over time. The progression of the disease varies from case to case and person to person. Probably another if you have family members or know someone who suffers from Alzheimer’s. So you know that the disease

Sandra Day O’Connor Well, thank you for a wonderful introduction. No one had to twist my arm to get me to come to a team court summer. And I’ll tell you why. I have a few grandchildren and my oldest grandchild, a girl happened to have a class and get involved in team court, thanks to Charlene role. And I used to hear all about team court from my granddaughter. And she learned so much in the program and thought so highly of it, that I became a booster long before I was invited to come here today. What surprises me, frankly, is that there aren’t multiple team courts in every state of the United States, it is a great program. And my hope is that somehow, word can spread across the United States and produce more team courts, it really helps you as you know, since you’re involved, understand how a legal system works. And it helps you learn to deal with very real problems that kids have. It’s it’s just a great program. So I’m delighted to be here. And I think this is what’s needed throughout the United States. Now, how many of you know what you want to do when you’re grown? Raise your hand, if you do? Well, that’s pretty good. That That’s impressive. Maybe that’s because of team court. Because I can tell you, I grew up in Arizona, on a remote ranch over in the eastern part of the state, I didn’t have much of an idea of what our wanted to do. Well, I knew was cattle ranching. So I wanted to be a cattle rancher, and that it didn’t work out too well. And I wasn’t involved at that time

Meryl Chertoff Okay, if I could ask the folks in the back or standing who plan to take seats to take their seats, and it can get started again. I’m pleased that we’ve been joined by some of our Georgetown Law School students. I’m Meryl Chertoff, the CEO and director of the Justice Society program and Aspen Institute and visiting professor of law here at Georgetown Law. I would be remiss if I let the opportunity go to say few words about some of our programs that are coming up in November 2010. The third Georgetown Law Aspen Institute symposium will take place and it will treat one of justice O’Connor’s other interests and that is civics education. The November event is going to take place at the Roosevelt House of Hunter College in New York City and will be devoted to the subject of civic education, which Justice O’Connor has done so much on in her years since leaving the Supreme Court. I also want to mention that the Aspen Institute, each summer conducts a seminar in Aspen, Colorado the justice and society seminar in which we read classic works with political philosophy and jurisprudence. The seminar this year will take place July 13 to 19th if you’re interested in further information will be found on the Aspen Institute website. This year, the moderators for the excellent program will be Barbara Rothstein, the director of the Federal Judicial center and Richard Briffault, a professor at Columbia Law School. And the same kind of psychological programming I hope we’re providing