MSS 04-1
The Papers of Judge Thomas C. Gordon, Jr
Overview
This collection (1965-1991) contains correspondence, memoranda, notebooks, lectures on legal writing, memorabilia and eleven paintings.
Language |
English |
|---|---|
Dates |
1965-1991 [Inclusive] |
Extents |
3 Cubic Feet (3 archival boxes, 11 paintings) |
Scope & Contents
This collection contains notebooks, memoranda and correspondence with between Judge Gordon and the University of Virginia School of Law, the Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia, the <em>Virginia Law Review</em> and the law firm of McGuire Woods. The use of language is a recurrent topic in this collection. There are extensive articles and newspaper clippings about the use of plain English and legal writing, as well as a collection of Gordon's speeches and notes.
Collection Description
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Biographical / Historical
Thomas Christian Gordon, Jr. was born in Richmond, Virginia, on 14 July 1915. His parents were Thomas Christian Gordon and Ruth Nelson (Robins). He attended the University of Virginia, receiving his B.A. in 1936 and his LL. B. from the Law School in 1938. Gordon was admitted to the Virginia Bar in 1937. From 1938-1940, he was an associate for the Richmond law firm of Parrish, Butcher & Parrish; from 1940-1965 and 1972-1983 he was an associate and partner of the law firm of McGuire, Woods and Battle, where his specialty was business law, and he was president of the Virginia Bar Association from 1963-1964. In 1965, he was nominated as an associate justice of what is now the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Justice Gordon was a lecturer at the University of Virginia Law School (1970-1972) and at the Marshall-Wythe School of Law (1979-1981). As a student at Virginia Law School, he was part of the editorial board of the <em>Virginia Law Review</em>. He was trustee and president of the Crippled Childrens Hospital of Richmond. He was part of the Fellow American Bar Foundation and a member of the American Bar Association. He retired from the law in 1981 and pursued his love to paint, took lessons at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and became an accomplished artist. He died May 17, 2003.
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Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Justice Thomas C. Gordon Papers were donated to the Special Collections Department of the Law Library in March 2004 by the law firm of McGuire Woods.
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Preferred Citation
Papers of Judge Thomas C. Gordon, Jr., MSS 04-1, Box Number, Special Collections, University of Virginia Law Library.
| fileLegal Writing. Associates Orientation Program, Fredericksburg, Va. [Handouts], 1986 | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| fileLegal Writing. Correspondence and Memoranda, 1970-1981 | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| fileLegal Writing, Oral Writing and Opinion Writing. [Miscellaneous Articles], n.d. | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| fileMagazine and T. V. Program Reviews. Correspondence, 1968, 1979 | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| fileMcGuire Woods LLP. Correspondence, 1965, 1973 | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| filePrinted Materials with Gordon’s Handwritten Notes [and some] Miscellaneous Funny Materials, 1969 and n.d. | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| fileSpeeches and Notes. [ black notebook], 1966-1974 | MSS 04-1, Box 1 |
| fileSullivan and Other Acts re Plain Language, 1978-1979, 1997 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| fileSupreme Court of Appeals of Virginia. Correspondence and Memorabilia, 1965-1971, 1983, 1991 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| fileVirginia Law Review. Correspondence, 1969-1971 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| fileUniversity of Virginia School of Law. Correspondence, 1965-1970, 1973 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| fileUniversity of Virginia School of Law Seminar. [ black notebook with Gordon’s teaching notes], 1970- 1971, 1973 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| fileWriting - Correspondence. [Includes correspondence with Justice Lewis F. Powell, Edward Wood, Hardy C. Dillard, Emerson G. Spies], 1965, 1970-1980 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| fileWriting - General. Miscellaneous articles and newspaper clippings, 1973-1980 | MSS 04-1, Box 2 |
| seriesNotebooks | |
| itemApplied Lawyering Notebook. [William and Mary], 1980 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemContinuing Legal Education for Associates, 1981 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemIntensive Writing Course. [William and Mary], 1979 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemLectures on Legal Writing, 1984-1991 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemSpeeches, 1965-1983 | MSS 04-1 |
| seriesPaintings | |
| itemCaravati, 1986 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemThe James at the Pony Pasture, 7/1986 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemMussing | MSS 04-1 |
| itemWhite on Red | MSS 04-1 |
| itemJapanese Garden, 6/1986 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemTwo Apples, 10/1987 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemEdibles, 11/1985 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemAutumn Scene at Virginia House, 12/1989 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemShedy in Black | MSS 04-1 |
| itemCloths, Lamp and Pottery, 1989 | MSS 04-1 |
| itemBasket of Unknown Objects, 12/1989 | MSS 04-1 |