Riccio, Ronald J.

English

Seton Hall University Libraries

TRIBUTE TO EUGENE GRESSMANA TRIBUTE TO OUR FRIEND,PROFESSOR EUGENE GRESSMANRonald J. Riccio*You might say that Gene Gressman makes a habit of retiring. Afterserving as a law clerk to Justice Murphy for an unprecedented five years,Gene retired from that position to work as an attorney. Thirty years later,his retirement from the practice of law was followed by a ten-year career asa professor of law at the University of North Carolina. Upon his retirementfrom that great institution, he graduated to Seton Hall, where he has taughtfor the last seven years. As Professor Gressman leaves the students, faculty,and alumni here who quickly came to love him, the question is, what next,Gene?For those who view it as a time for leisure, Gene has given retirementa bad name, for the truth is that Gene has never really retired from anything.His work for Justice Murphy was just the beginning of a relationship with theSupreme Court which is characterized by an intimate knowledge of theinstitution and warm personal friendships with many of the Justices over theyears. It has been crowned by the many editions of his book, Supreme CourtPractice, first published in 1950 and now in its Seventh Edition.' From itsfirst appearance, it has been the "bible" for the Supreme Court bar and forthe Court itself. And, unlike the original Good Book, its author is oftentelephoned when the text needs exposition. In fact, Gene is always beingconsulted, often by attorneys who rely on his knowledge and his wisdom asthey prepare for the culmination of their legal careers - an argument beforethe High Court.The transition from law clerk to lawyer took Gene away from the Courtat first, but just as surely brought him back to it. Gene soon became theSupreme Court's premier private practitioner, having presented morearguments to that august body than any private attorney and having writtenliterally hundreds of petitions for certiorari and briefs for the Court. Hisbest known cases before the High Court include representing the House of'Dean, Seton Hall University School of Law.'STERN, ET. AL., SUPREME COURT PRACTICE (7th ed. 1993).1994CONSTITUTIONAL LAW JOURNALRepresentatives in INS v. Chadha2 and the State of Louisiana in Marylandv. Louisiana.'But Gene's cases usually started in the lower courts, and were often forhumbler clients. He had an extensive practice which frequently embracedpro bono presentation of important constitutional issues for individuals whowould not otherwise have had their cases presented. Anyone who wants toappreciate the strength both of Gene's advocacy and of his humanity needonly read Professor Daniel Hill Pollitt's tribute, Eugene Gressman: AsMirrored by his Cases." Professor Pollitt recounts not Gene's more famousdecisions, but his labors for indigent criminal defendants at a time when thelegal environment was typically unresponsive, if not hostile.When Gene "retired" from the practice of law and joined the faculty ofthe University of North Carolina Law School as William Rand KenanProfessor, he was really neither leaving an old career nor starting a new one.His practice before the Supreme Court continued; he simply allowed moretime for what had always been an abiding interest in scholarship andteaching. In the scholarly arena, the publication of Supreme Court Practicein 1950 had been followed by a succession of articles, often with a civilrights or civil liberties theme. These include a still often-cited piece, TheUnhappy History of Civil Rights Legislation,5 and continued in a largenumber of articles which he wrote or co-authored and perhaps an evengreater number in which he generously assisted younger colleagues. On theteaching front, Gene had visited at a number of law schools, includingMichigan, Ohio State, George Washington, and Catholic, before settlingdown at North Carolina.Gene's penultimate "retirement," his departure from the University ofNorth Carolina, might have been viewed by some as for real. He came toSeton Hall Law School to visit for a year as the Richard J. Hughes Chair ofConstitutional Law and Public Policy. But those who thought that Gene hadfinally retired could not have been more wrong. That year visitorshipstretched into seven, during which time he remained a vibrant scholar, apopular and dedicated teacher, and a wonderful colleague. His scholarship2462 U.S. 919 (1983).'451 U.S. 725 (1981).4Daniel Hill Pollitt, Eugene Gressman: As Mirrored by his Cases, 65 N.C.L. REV. 863(1987).5Eugene Gressman, The Unhappy History of Civil Rights Legislation, 50 MICH. L. REv.1323 (1952).Vol. 4TRIBUTE TO EUGENE GRESSMANincluded an important new work, Cases and Materials on ConstitutionalLaW (now in its second edition), that makes more of his knowledge onsubstantive constitutional doctrine accessible to new generations of lawstudents. He has also continued to work with younger colleagues, as in hispresent collaboration with Professor Carmella on an article assessing theconstitutionality of the new Religious Freedom Restoration Act. His teachingincluded his perennially over-subscribed Supreme Court Practice Seminar(which included an annual "field trip" to Washington to observe the Courtand meet with the Justices). He has also brought alive Constitutional Lawfor the first year students who were truly privileged to learn from someonewith such aj intimate knowledge of the Court. I availed myself of theopportunity to learn from this quintessential constitutional professor when Iaudited his constitutional law course in anticipation of my own efforts toteach the course a year later. Thanks to Gene's compassion, he exemptedme from the exam and never did take attendance. Of course, attendancenever needed taking with Gene, since he always teaches to a full house.Gene says he is retiring again. But even Gene can't fool all the peopleall the time. A time honored practice in academia is to give someone whohas labored for seven years a sabbatical, with the expectation that they willreturn to teach again. I prefer to say that next year Gene Gressman will beon sabbatical from Seton Hall. Certainly nothing would make us happierthan to have him back. His steadying influence, warm sense of humor, freespirit, and outrageous neck ties can never be replaced. We have beenblessed to be around Gene.In the meantime, farewell dear Gene and Nan, you are loved by all ofus and you will be missed. God bless you both!6DAVID CRUMP ET AL., CASES AND MATERIALS ON CONSTITUTIONAL LAW (2d ed. 1990).1994456 CONSTITUTIONAL LAW JOURNAL Vol. 4

A Tribute to Our Friend, Professor Eugene Gressman

https://scholarship.shu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1083&context=con_law

A Tribute to Our Friend, Professor Eugene Gressman

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