W Earl Britt Bio and Portrait Ceremony
W. EARL BRITT
William Earl Britt was born in McDonald, Robeson County, North Carolina in 1932, the youngest of seven children of Dudley H. Britt and Mae Hall Britt. He attended the public schools of Robeson County, graduating from Rowland High School in 1950. During his youth he worked on the farm and in the general merchandise store of his father.
In the fall of 1950 he entered Campbell College which, at the time, was a Junior College, from which he graduated in May 1952. He transferred to Wake Forest College which he attended in the 1952-53 school year and the summer of 1953. In November 1954 he entered the United States Army and served until September 1955 when he returned to Wake Forest College, entering the School of Law on the combined degree program. Judge Britt received his B.S. degree in the last graduating class from the old campus in Wake Forest, North Carolina, in June 1956. While in law school he served as president of the Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity. He received his L.L.B. degree from Wake Forest in June 1958 and successfully completed the State Bar Exam in August 1958. From September 1958 until August 1959 he served as Research Assistant to North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Emery B. Denny.
Judge Britt began the practice of law in Robeson County in 1958 with his brothers, David and N.L., and John W. Campbell, in the firm of Britt, Campbell & Britt, with offices in Fairmont and Lumberton. He continued practicing with his brother, David until August 1967 when David became a judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals. Thereafter, he practiced in Fairmont and Lumberton in solo practice and as a member of the firms of Page, Floyd & Britt and Page & Britt.
He served as a Trustee of Southeastern Community College from 1965 until 1970 and Pembroke State University from 1967 until 1972 (Vice Chairman from 1969 until 1971 and Chairman in 1972). He was a member of the original Board of Governors of the University of North Carolina from 1972 until 1975 (Vice Chairman from 1973 until 1975). Judge Britt was also active in the Fairmont Jaycees and the Robeson County Democratic Party and has served on the Wake Forest University School of Law Board of Visitors.
President Jimmy Carter appointed Judge Britt as United States District Judge for the Eastern District of North Carolina in May 1980 and he was sworn in on 30 May of that year.
During his tenure on the Federal Bench, he served as the Fourth Circuit Representative to the Judicial Conference of the United States for six years and as President of the Federal Judges Association for two years (1995-97). He took Senior Status in 1997 and continues to carry a partial case load. As part of his judicial duties, Judge Britt enthusiastically presides over naturalization ceremonies held in conjunction with the International Festival and elsewhere in the District. Also, he was instrumental in establishing the Eastern District of North Carolina's reentry court, known as HOPE (Helping Offenders Pursue Excellence), a comprehensive 12-18 month program of supervision and rehabilitation services that target nonviolent offenders who have a history of substance abuse.
Judge Britt has been a member of the North Carolina Bar Association since 1958, and in 2008, the Association established a Justice Fund in his honor. He is a recipient of Campbell University's Distinguished Alumnus Award, the North Carolina Bar Association's Liberty Bell Award, and the News and Observer's Tar Heel of the Week.
Judge Britt and his wife are the proud parents of six, grandparents of eleven, and great-grandparents of three. They enjoy spending their time near and on the water with their two dogs.
United States District Court
for the Eastern District of North Carolina
Raleigh Division
Presentation of Portrait
HONORABLE W. EARL BRITT
December 18, 1998
Proceedings
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Good afternoon, ladies and gentleman, and welcome to this joyous occasion. It is my pleasure and privilege on behalf of the Court to thank you all for being here; to thank particularly Judge Britt's family and colleagues that have joined us on the state and federal bench; state and federal dignitaries who are here and will be introduced, and all of the friends who have come to join us to be a part of this occasion.
Your presence here today is greatly appreciated, and your presence is an important and visible expression of the respect and the admiration that all of us share for Judge Britt, and the dignity with which you treat this occasion.
The first order of business will be the introduction of some of the guests today. We want to thank you for your presence. I won't be able to introduce everyone who is here, but that does not mean that everyone's presence is not important. And, of course, after the ceremony is complete, there will be an opportunity for you to visit with each other and share your feelings about this occasion. And we are more than tolerant of babies here. We will go through the crying of young children. But there is no problem.
Let me also say that if anyone wants to take a picture or make photographs during this ceremonial session, you are welcome to do so. Hopefully you will do it discreetly, but you may want to have pictures to memorialize this occasion.
Now, let me introduce some of our guests who are here today. We are hopeful that the Governor will come. I don't believe he has gotten here yet, but when he does come, he will be introduced and recognized briefly. Judge Dickson Phillips is with us from the United States Court of Appeals. Where is Judge Phillips? We are glad to have you here.
Chief Judge Bullock from the Middle District of North Carolina is here. We appreciate your being here. Judge Tilley from the Middle District is also here; Judge Osteen. Where are you? Thank you. From our Court Judge Small of the Bankruptcy Court is here. Judge Rich Leonard of the Bankruptcy Court is here. From the Eastern District Magistrate Judges Denson and Dixon and Mason are here. We are most privileged to have the Chief Justice of North Carolina, Chief Justice Mitchell. Thank you very much for being here, and also from the North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Willis Whitchard. Thank you, Justice Whitchard; Justice Sara Parker. Thank you, Justice Parker.
Justice Wynn—Jim Wynn. Thank you. From the North Carolina—and Justice Beverly Lake, excuse me, from the Supreme Court. From the North Carolina Court of Appeals Chief Judge Sidney Eagles; Judge Eagles. Judge John Martin; Judge Martin, and Judge Joe John, and Judge Eddie Green from the Court of Appeals here. Judge Lewis—Jack Lewis; Judge Ralph Walker; Judge Horton. Nice to see you. And our Secretary of State, Elaine Marshall.
Judge Britt's family is here, and we are delighted to have so many of them and to have them share this occasion. Ms. Britt, Judy Britt; I recognize Judge Britt's children, Cliff, Zachary—I am sorry. I am in the grandchildren. Has anybody been in that point in life when you can see or not see? Mark—where are you Mark? Beth, Melissa—she is in the back. Okay. Whit, Betty and your families are with you.
The grandchildren are Nick, Zachary, Brittany, Maxwell, Benjamin—who has got Benjamin?
JUDGE BRITT: He is in the back.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Who do you have, Judge Britt?
JUDGE BRITT: Maxwell.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Maxwell; okay. He has got the best seat in the house. Abigail and Josey—she is outside. Judge Britt's brother and sister-in-law, Justice David Britt and Ms. Britt, and his sister, Miriam Purvis; how are you? And his father-in-law, Alvin Moore. How are you? And Judge Britt's brother-in-law, Jerry Moore and his family. Thank you. Delighted to have you all here today.
As I said, there are many other dignitaries and people of note would be introduced if we had more time, but we thank you for being here. At this time we will proceed with the program, and it is my privilege to recognize Senator Robert B. Morgan for continuation of the program.
SENATOR MORGAN: May it please the Court, distinguished members of the bench and bar, friends and family of Judge Britt, and most of Robeson County, good afternoon. I am pleased and honored to have this opportunity to be on this program. I want to be sure that I recognize the distinguished members of the bench, because I have still got a few cases floating around here. I want to stay in good grace.
I am very honored to participate in this ceremony because I have been very proud to have been a friend of Earl Britt for a long, long time, and I have watched with a great deal of interest and pleasure his performance as a judge.
Judge Dupree, who used to preside in this courtroom, whose father—I hate to think I have been around so long that I knew most of the parents and fathers better than I do the participants. Mr. Frank Dupree used to say, "Oh, I knew your father mighty well." Well, I knew Judge Britt's brother mighty well long before I knew Judge Britt. Justice David Britt and I served together in the legislature for many, many years, and I knew him, of course, as a very distinguished jurist from the Court of Appeals and on the Supreme Court.
Judge Britt and I practiced law in the same general area for more than decade, almost two decades. We both practiced in rural areas, he in Robeson County, and I was in Harnett County, and we appeared in many, many of the same courts and similar courts. We both engaged in the general practice of law, and I knew him in that position. And of course, in a judicial environment, I should never mention politics, but since we are all here together, I can't refrain from it. When he was running for public office for a number of times and was looking for some friends that was highly respected throughout the southeastern part of North Carolina, I could only turn to my friend, Earl Britt.
And he was one of my district workers. I don't know—do you call them campaign managers? But the one thing, Judge, we always carried that area of state. Later on I became—when I went to the United States Senate, we had a vacancy in this court. And one of the first areas that I looked for when I was asked by the President for a recommendation was someone from southeastern North Carolina. It had been a long, long time since we had any federal district judges from eastern North Carolina.
We had many distinguished members of the bar, Justice Britt, his brother, and Justice Varser, who most of you, I doubt, even remember the name, from Robeson County. But we also had Judge McMillan in the Western District of North Carolina. But there was only one name that stood out when we began to look around for people to recommend. And I was pleased to have the opportunity to recommend Earl Britt for appointment by President Carter to this bench, to this position. I was pleased to introduce him to the Senate Judiciary Committee. And Judge, it has been a year and a half and maybe a few days since you took the office in Robeson County—no, 18 years and a half and a few days since we were all assembled down in the courtroom in Robeson County where Judge Britt took the oath of office.
He has served with great distinction. He has believed in the rule of law. He believes in following the rules of law, and especially trying cases according to the rules of evidence and the rules of procedure. And I believe that he reflects extremely well on this court. I have never appeared before him except on one occasion when Judge Dupree shuffled me over for a motion before him. And after that one, I never came back.
I left here one afternoon on a motion, and after appearing before Judge Britt a week later I was in Modesta, California in the federal court. But at any rate, I never thought—I did think that the Judge would keep me in North Carolina. But he sent me way out. But I never thought it proper for me. I wasn't talking about the ruling. But I never thought it proper for me to appear in a court of a friend of mine and a person who had worked so hard for my election, but I do want to say in addition to his performance as a Judge, he has shown extremely good judgment.
I say that somewhat facetiously because Senator Sam Ervin was called upon to present me one time in Morganton at a luncheon, and about the only thing that I remember that Senator Sam said about me was that I demonstrated extremely good judgment when I nominated his son to the Circuit Court of Appeals. So Judge Britt demonstrated extremely good judgment when he let my daughter, Mary, clerk for him one time. And it has been a great help and assistance to her.
Judge, I want to congratulate you on the many friends and your performance and tell you how pleased I am that you decided to stay on the bench, and we will look with a great deal of pride as your portrait—I am not going to say if we hang your portrait—as your portrait is placed in this courtroom. Thank you.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Thank you very much, Senator Morgan. I now recognize Mr. Eugene Boyce of the Wake County Bar to speak.
MR. BOYCE: May it please the Court, bear with me a little bit. I would not have missed this opportunity for the world. This is my first day back in a coat and tie in probably a month or so, so excuse my voice. It is never very good, but it is kind of weak today. I have lost a little weight lately, too. You all probably noticed that. I remarked to somebody downtown this morning about having lost some weight, and they said, "How much did you lose?" I said, "Well, probably not enough, but I am down to about 195," and one of the other guys in town said, "Well, that is pretty good, but that is not the perfect weight for a lawyer."
I said, "What is the perfect weight for a lawyer?" and he said, "Well, about 27 ounces, including the urn." I don't think I look that bad. So bear with me, your Honor.
Close your eyes just for a minute, because we are going back 46 years, and we are going back to a time when you were walking up the sidewalk at the campus on old Wake Forest to the Pika House. That is 10 steps up, you remember, to the Chapter Room. And as you came on campus for the first time in the fall of 1952, there was a row of guys blocking the steps leading up into the Chapter Room, and these guys were soon to become your brothers.
And your real brothers, as well as mine, had already been to Wake Forest and probably had a lot to do with us going there, and probably had a lot to do with us ending up at the Pika House. And as you are walking, close your eyes and remember here comes the Seaboard Train, deafening down as it rumbled right through the heart of town, and nobody could say anything. Nobody could hear anything. And finally you said, "Hi. I am Earl Britt. I am from Fairmont, North Carolina. I just graduated from Campbell Junior College." And the guys on the steps in unison all said, "Hi, Earl." And that was the day the friendship began.
And there was me and Doc and Jeff and Chisel Chin and Studd and Geek and Rodent—you know who I am talking about. It was the fall of the year, of course, and football season. You can close your eyes and smell the grass. You were talking to us, and you saw us; we were peeking over your shoulders, and you were kind of set back, because we didn't seem to be paying much attention to you, and then you realized the Pika House was out where the girls walked from the girls' dorm down the sidewalk to Bob's College Inn to supper and Dick Fryes to eat supper. And we lost touch with you there for a minute or two. But soon you came to take your place on the step and do that late afternoon gazing as we did.
Now, I can't say that I remember all these things off the top of my head, because of the aging process. So I had to fudge a little bit, and I went back up into the attic and pulled out a couple of memory refreshers, and let me just go over a couple of them with you, because I think this will get you back into the spirit of what I really want to say.
Here is a copy of the Old Gold and Black, for those who do not know, the campus newspaper, that covers the campus like the magnolias. September 29, 1952; this is the oldest one, the first one I could find of your entry onto the campus. We beat William and Mary that weekend. I hate to say we lost to Baylor the next week. But your second month on campus—you all be still here—we beat UNC over at Chapel Hill 9 to 7. Homecoming that year we beat State. I am going to 'fess up we didn't win the Big Four Tournament Championship. We lost to Duke, 14 to 7.
An interesting thing I noticed in this one, there was a notice in the college newspaper of the death of one of our esteemed professors, Dr. James Lake, 91 years old, who served on the faculty for many, many years and retired in 1932. His grandson is over there in the jury box, a dear friend of yours.
There are a lot of things in here. I am going to save them and talk to you about them some other time, but since time is so limited I will go on to Homecoming when we beat State, and you remember the new campus was under construction and it had been a year since President Truman came down and dedicated the new campus. Eisenhower was elected President; won in a landslide over Stevenson, and there were a lot of things going on on campus in campus politics as well.
One thing I ran across on page four of the October 27 issue is worth taking a minute or two to read to you, because I know you believe this and ascribe to it. It concerns the three attributes of our Wake Forest College. One is the power of the college to attract scholarly teachers who have been happy to devote their entire lives to Wake Forest. Number two, the second attribute that has been manifest in the founding of the college is the loyalty of the alumni, a factor as important as the loyalty of the faculty in the building of the college.
The third attribute is more intangible, but no less striking. Early in its career Wake Forest became definitely not a rich man's school, but one with a democratic atmosphere that never fails to impress visitors and newcomers. Boys of wealth have attended, but they have become one with the boys who worked their way through college. And you know who I am talking about. There was a tradition on campus where everyone spoke to everybody, only by then we had what, 1200 people in our student body. But in the early days where there was only a handful there, the tradition remained.
And this article ends by saying the influences over individuals that Wake Forest has exerted was expressed a few years ago by the alumnus who said the very atmosphere of the college gave each student the feeling that he could be somebody, and caused him to struggle to achieve that awakened desire.
We had a lot of ambition. We were full of vinegar, as the saying goes. We were in a hurry for some reason to get through college. Looking back, I know not why. I would have liked to stay there forever. The fall ended not on a very high note, because I found this issue of the Old Gold and Black, November 24th, 1952. It had on it the distressing news that you will be interested in, and which some of you may relate to, Doc Murphrey joins the Army. Doc went kicking and screaming. But is said, "The long and brilliant career of Doc Murphrey is rapidly drawing to a close. Murphrey's search for knowledge has not been along strictly defined paths on all cases; it has been his assumption and one to which he has adhered to religiously that no one perhaps can achieve better this goal through a complete absorption into the very singular atmosphere of Wake Forest rather than the more pressing challenge of academic preparation."
Now, Doc didn't write that, but that is what Doc believed. So Doc was taken away from us fairly early on after your arrival, but he came back and you all finished law school together. And there was a time, you remember, when a friend said—Doc's father was asked, "What is your son going to be upon graduation?" And Doc's daddy said, "An old man." And that was true because Doc always told us, you remember, about himself, that he went to Wake Forest College three terms, Truman, Eisenhower and Kennedy.
I will just conclude by saying that when December 8th came your first semester on campus, Willie C. Murphrey is off to fight the communist hordes. When questioned regarding the draft notice, Doc's first reply was, "This is a situation up with which I shall not put." But then on second thought he commented, "It is only for two years, and like another great man said, I shall return." Doc did and you did. Later on you all came back together to join and complete your law school tenure.
And we were all, as I said, ambitious, anxious, the cock of the walk, but we found our time during those short years to make lifelong friendships that endure today and are even stronger than ever. But it all passed so quickly, we remember so vividly so many things about what we said and what happened, and then our time came and we were all one another off to the Army; then some left and came back to law school. Then the same group came back to law school after the Army, Frank and Doc and Jeff, Chris, Lewis, Graham and there you all were and there we were.
Dean Weathers and Dr. Lee and Professor Timberlake hammered into our heads the very simplistic truth about being lawyers; that you always put your clients first; that you make sure your clients know there are only two choices: you either tell the whole truth or keep your mouth shut; that the law is a jealous mistress; that being a lawyer is a privilege and not a right; that our government is one of laws and not of men, and a whole semester of ethics under Dean Weathers, who gave us really only one rule to follow: if there is any doubt about it, just don't do it.
These simple truths, we have learned, were fixed as the stars, and served us all well, and certainly served you well through the years. We were turned loose on the world after finishing law school and passing the bar, and most of us went back to our hometowns, you to Fairmont, me to Raleigh, Roanoke Rapids, Wallace, High Point, Winston-Salem. We all went back. Then came marriage, children, careers and then children in law school, which has turned out to be a blessing for all of us. Then more weddings and grandchildren all over the place.
So that is the past. So now, Judge, if you would, please, close your eyes one more time and fast forward 46 years to now. And I want you to imagine or see in your mind's eye a perfectly blue sky, and empty cloudless sky, except for an occasional black dot flying over or maybe a two-second roar of a Marine jet painting a snow white vapor trail up in that blue sky. You can feel a breeze that moves just ever so slightly the tips of marsh grass. As far as you can see there is a flat quiet expanse or water called the Albemarle. You are at Durant, but you are not alone.
The silence is broken by a number of all too familiar voices. There is Doc, Jeff, Frank, Graham, Lewis, Grady, Chris, a large bunch of those same guys telling the same stories and listening to and even forcing Doc and Chris to repeat the jokes we heard at least a hundred times, and there you are and there we are still having fun as friends; sharing our triumphs and our sorrows, sharing feelings about those like Charlie Winberry and Joe Branch, who we will never see again on this earth.
But my favorite memory of you and Durant is when our sons started coming six or eight years ago in October. You insisted to them that Durant Island was outside your jurisdiction. You told the boys, young men, but we call them young boys, that they must on the island call you Earl; then six months later on our April trip, I remember you riding in the club boat, all 12 of them boys lined up on the pier and in unison those boys said as you stepped onto the dock, "Hi, Earl," just like we did at Wake Forest on those steps the first day you came.
But that was the only time them boys did that. It was always Judge Britt thereafter because they have the same high affection for you and the highest regard for your office that the rest of us have always had and will always have. Our sons now have their own professions and had their own law professors, and they learned their own lessons, but believe me, by your example, and to some extent by the example of the rest of us, they are better lawyers, and they are, and more of them will be some day better judges.
My lasting memory was a time when this court opened as it did a while ago. You came in from the back chambers and the marshal said, as Katie did, "All rise," and the lawyers and the witnesses and the jurors, the spectators all stood up. You continued to stand behind your chair, as the judges did today, and the marshal proceeded to open court with his usual chant. And everybody sat down. What I remember, though, is you told the jury and all of us, and the spectators, the people who probably would not have known otherwise, that they should have noticed when they came in, they stood up; it was not for you, because they saw you were also remaining standing; that standing until the marshal finished, you told the jury, was out of respect not for just one person, but to show the respect that all should have for the court itself and respect for the rule of law.
I have gone on much too long, but I close by asking you, your honor, does anyone remember the first five words that I uttered? I said, "May it please the court." I want you to know—we all want you to know today the court, William Earl Britt, has pleased us.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Thank you very much, Gene. We are honored to have the Governor of North Carolina here. Governor Hunt, thank you for being able to join us on a busy day, and we want to recognize you. And I understand you may have a word to share with us. We will be glad to hear from you.
GOVERNOR HUNT: Thank you, your honor. May it please the court, I am privileged to get to be here today and say a word about this wonderful North Carolinian and this great judge. And I don't mean to be disrespectful, but maybe before I leave here today, I can on behalf of the State of North Carolina try to arrange terms with Eugene Boyce.
By the way, in addition to beating us in court so regularly, he has been good about working with us, and I say that respectfully. Folks, I have always been proud of our state judicial system and of course our federal courts. The men and women who have served on them and who serve on them have been people of the highest standards bound for a moral and ethical code that all of us are very proud of.
We have not had a judge that has been a better example of that than Earl Britt. I am so proud of all that has made up his background, and I think that has determined what he is. He grew up in rural Robeson County; raised on a tobacco farm. I am told that he didn't spend most of his time working in the tobacco fields, but in a general store; that he knew the hard work that people did, and he respected them, and he treated them all equally.
He learned the value of hard work in serving his community. Of his five brothers, three of them are lawyers. His brother, David, served as Speaker of our House, one of the great ones, and served on our North Carolina Supreme Court. Truly this man comes from the roots of our society, and he is rooted in it, and he has never forgotten it.
We are honoring him, of course, today, and they kind of let me come and be a little part of it, for his contributions as a U.S. District Judge. And I want to tell you, my observation has been—and I have been in his courtroom before. He has been kind when I was even deposed in the courtroom, I will say. In all of that, in being a federal judge, I guess could go to a person's head. It hasn't in the case of present company. It hasn't and never would with Judge Earl Britt.
He has been a great servant. I think he has done what is right, as I have observed it. He has treated the people right. They have known that he was their servant in their courts, and yet he has seen that the business was done correctly. Of course, his family is the love of his life. And Judge, as I was coming in a while ago, I guess through that door, the minute I walked in I heard one of your grandchildren out there hollering. I want to get this straight, you have seven or eight grandchildren?
JUDGE BRITT: Seven.
GOVERNOR HUNT: And one on the way?
JUDGE BRITT: And one on the way.
GOVERNOR HUNT: Well, Judge, I have six and one on the way. You have a lot of grandchildren. And your good wife has done a lot to get ready for Christmas. So has mine. But I just wanted to come by and to, first of all, in a right historic moment in the nation's life, tell you how proud I am of our court system, federal and state, and the men and women who serve on it, and how particularly fortunate I think we are for the life of Earl Britt and the service of this man and for his service as a federal judge. And I think I can speak for all North Carolinians in telling him how much we admire him; appreciate him; are blessed by his life and his service.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Thank you very much, Governor, and thank you for coming today. It certainly has enriched this ceremony. I would like to now recognize Judge Britt's son, Cliff Britt.
CLIFF BRITT: Zachary wanted to come and stand beside me. May it please the court, Governor Hunt, judges and members of the federal and state judiciary, and distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the family of Judge W. Earl Britt, I am indeed honored and proud to participate in this ceremony in presentation of his portrait in his own courtroom.
It was only after going to law school at Wake Forest following him several years after he did and becoming a lawyer who participates in trials, as he did, that I was able to appreciate, understand and value the judicial virtues and abilities of my father as a lawyer and a jurist. While doing research I would occasionally come across some decisions that he had offered, and of course, all the lawyers know we occasionally read about the decisions. I take Lawyer's Weekly and I read about those every week or so.
Although I was not always happy with the precedents that he had set for me in my practice, I knew in my heart that the decisions were fair and that the results were just.
And like Senator Morgan, I appeared in this court only once, and that was to be sworn in as a member of the eastern district bar several years ago. And as a recall, there was a fire alarm, and we had to get out of the building pretty quickly. So I wasn't able to stay that long. Since then, as the rules require, I never again appeared in your courtroom until today, and therefore I am unable to share with you some of the experiences that some might have had with you as their judge.
But what I can relate to you today are some of the more memorable occasions that we shared together as father and son. As William Wordsworth wrote once, "...the best portion of a good man's life are his little nameless unremembered acts of kindness and of love." And with Dad there are many.
One of the things that each son will remember most about his father during childhood would be how he maintained and taught discipline, and he was always able to get through to us better with the serious discussions than he was when we had done something wrong. Don't get me wrong now, he did take his belt to us every now and then, though we were always most afraid and most fearful of those times when we had the serious discussions.
I can recall the times where, you know, he came close to tears telling us that the reason he wanted us to learn our lessons was because he loved us so much, and that without the discipline we would grow up selfish, not knowing what was right and wrong, and not respecting of the rights of others. And his discipline and his messages are easier to understand now that I have four children of my own. You have probably been listening to them throughout this service; all under age six.
But I suppose it is a tribute to him that I find myself using some of the same methods and saying some of the same things to them to keep them in line, such as, "If you boys don't get quiet, it is going to be me and you and mostly me." Does that sound familiar? "If you boys don't stop fighting, I am going to cloud up and rain all over you." And then some of the more subtle ones were, "Son, what do you think your punishment should be next time this happens?" And "Son, is there anything I should know that you would like to tell me? Is there something I should know about?" Those were always the ones that I was most scared of.
Well, I have had many pleasurable memories hunting and fishing, as Mr. Boyce talked about earlier. We have had a lot of hunting and fishing together, and there are a number of stories that I could tell you, but we would be here the rest of the day. We have been to some of the most beautiful places in North Carolina and some would say the world when we go down on or near Durant Island in the middle of Albemarle Sound and through the Alligator River, fishing for large mouth bass while watching black bear on the shore and listening to the red wolf howl at the moon at night, deep down in the swamp between the Cape Fear and the Black River hunting white tail deer, and listening to Crawford Marshall spin a tale about the old days, or in a duck blind in the Currituck Sound with all of its history on a morning so cold we had to break the ice to get across in a Little Jon boat.
I do recall a couple of occasions that we were out hunting, and the only times I really saw fear in my father's eyes were two times down in the green swamp. One occasion was when my brother, Mark, was with me. We were out hunting, and Mark was about ten years old, and Dad had given him a small gun, a little bird gun. It was a double barrel .20 with about a 20-inch barrel, and it was just a little bird gun. But he put Mark on his stand and it was early in the morning, and in about half an hour it got light, and we heard a shot go off.
Daddy came running up to me and said, "Are you okay? Did you kill a deer?" I said, "I thought that it was you." And the look on his face at that moment was, Oh, my God, what has Mark done to himself. And we ran down the fire lane a little bit and there Mark was in front of a nice big old eight pointer, the first one, the first one he ever killed. We tried to find the bullets, but we figured it just died of fright, you know, one shot—one shot.
There was also another time when Mark was also with us and we were out hunting, and Mark was on the tailgate, and we were having a can of vienna sausage and saltines or something like that, just listening to the dogs run. And Mark was on the tailgate; I was in the passenger seat. Dad was driving. We saw the deer cross the road in front of us. And we had one of these deer hunts that has a road that goes all the way around, a mile one way and a mile another way, and so we figured, you know, let's hurry around to the other side, and the deer, when it comes out, we will be ready for him.
We jumped in the car and started going along; went all the way around to the other side, and about time we got stopped; thought it was a good place and cut the car off, Dad leaned his head out the window and said, "Mark, you hear the dogs running? Mark?" Mark wasn't there. And at that point that was the second time I had seen true fear in Dad's eyes. He was concerned, Oh, Lord, what have I done to Mark; had he fallen off the tailgate with a gun in his hands?
And of course, we made land speed records getting back around to the other side, but needless to say Mark quickly got us back in a good mood because he was laughing about how it all happened, and everything turned out okay.
I could go on and on and share countless tales with you, but now is not really the time or the place for that. I do want to share with you something that Dad did to me on my thirteenth birthday, and he might not remember it, but he gave me a framed poem by Rudyard Kipling, entitled "If." And it was handwritten in calligraphy by a local jeweler in Lumberton named A. J. Holmes. And Dad told me that he would give me $100.00 if I memorized it and recited it back to him, which I eventually did.
But what has been really special to me with reviewing this poem last night, you know, 25 years later, and reflecting back and thinking how much a role model that Dad has been to me, and so it is with great love and admiration that I read it back to you, Dad, and say that in my mind you have lived your life like I want to live mine.
"...If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired of waiting, or being lied about; don't deal in lies, or being hated; don't give way to hating, and yet don't look too good nor talk too wise;
If you can dream and not make dreams your master; if you can think and not make thoughts your aim; if you can meet with triumph and disaster, and treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you have spoken twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, or watch the things you gave your life to broken and stoop and build them up with worn out tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings and risk it on one turn of pitc and toss and lose and start again at your beginnings and never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew to serve your turn long after they are gone and hold on when there is nothing in you except the will which says to them, hold on;
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue or walk with kings, nor lose the common touch; if neither foe nor loving friends can hurt you; if all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds worth of distance run, then yours is the earth and everything that is in it, and which is more, you will be a man, my son."
As I read through the poem, I guess there were portions of that that caused each of you to think, yeah, that is Earl, or yes, that is Judge Britt, or I remember some things that he has done with me, and I had similar feelings myself. And Dad, on behalf of your children and your grandchildren, thank you for being a great role model. We are proud to have you as our father, and we love you very much.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Thank you very much, Cliff. At this point in the program I am going to recognize Sharon Hartman Spence, one of Judge Britt's former law clerks and a distinguished lawyer here in Raleigh, to proceed with the presentation of the portrait. And I take it you will introduce Mrs. Britt; is that right?
MS. SPENCE: Thank you, Chief Judge Boyle. May it please the court, Judge Britt and the Britt family, distinguished guests, I am one of the 22 men and women who had the honor and privilege to serve as law clerks to Judge Britt in the past 18 years. You have heard many wonderful words about him today as a friend and a colleague, a lawyer, a judge and a father. I want to speak about him for a moment as a mentor and a teacher.
For the most part, Judge, you took the burden of 20 something young lawyers, and over the next two years and beyond, tried to teach us how to become better advocates for our clients. You cheered us on. We have become attorneys and lawyers in large and small firms, partners and associates, solo practitioners, public interest lawyers, federal public defenders, appellate defenders, law professors, and even aspiring novelists and you prepared us very well to assume the responsibility of the career path we had chosen
We have learned lots from you, and among them certainly the value of hard work. Anyone who knows you knows that energy you bring to your office. You are often in the office before 7:30 in the morning, long before your eyes gazed on a law clerk. You would venture into the kitchen about noon and put something on a cracker and call it lunch, and then go back into your chambers and work well into the evening.
You are legendary for conducting two lengthy jury trials simultaneously, putting a jury in the box at 8:00 o'clock in the morning and working until after lunch, and bringing in another group of lawyers and another group of jurors to start the second session of the day. All the while you had a total command of the facts and the law of those cases and had your courtroom running like clockwork. So we didn't just learn the value of hard work; we learned the value of excellence.
You set a very high standard for us, Judge, for yourself and for others, and we have been aspiring to strive for those standards ever since.
I suppose the most important lesson that we carried away from our job was the importance of professionalism, and certainly our duties as officers of the court. You always expected professionalism in the courtroom, in your chambers, and in the clerk's office. In fact, you commanded it. And we strive each day, I believe, to aspire to those standards that you expect of us in our dealings with the court, with our fellow lawyers, and with our clients.
You also challenged us to stand by our convictions and to be able to defend them under important circumstances. You would also ask us how would you decide the issue and why; how would you sentence this defendant and why back before there was something called sentencing guidelines. And then you would pepper us with the difficult questions that would cause us to think our positions that would challenge our knowledge of the facts and the law, and would certainly cause us to think about the consequences of those positions.
And then when we left you we ventured into the courtrooms of Judge Dupree and Judge Fox, Judge Boyle, Judge Howard, and many of the distinguished judges that are present in the courtroom today. We were ready to respond to the difficult questions and to represent our clients to the best of our abilities. You also spoiled us, because when you invited us to come work for you, we had the opportunity to work for the world's best secretary. Many a legal assistant has been measured by the standards that were set by Ruby Freeman, and that is a very high standard for me.
Ruby is a true friend and someone that I certainly am proud to have known in my life. You also, when you gave us the opportunity to work with you, you invited us into your extended family. You and Judy regularly entertained us in your home. You had lunch with us once a month when time permitted. You held and you cuddled each of our 20 children, soon to be 26. You bravoed in our accomplishments and you shared our sorrows. And I am proud to say on behalf of your past, your present, and I am delighted to say, in the future also, it has been our honor and privilege to know a person of your ability, your intelligence, your compassion, and your integrity.
And now it is our opportunity to give something back in your Honor along with the members of this audience. And that is your portrait. Eventually your portrait will hang in the courtroom where you presided for the better part of the last 18 years. But before we unveil it I want to say a few words about the portrait artist, Linda Noah. Linda is a North Carolina native where she grew up in Alamance County, and now lives in Graham.
Linda has been studying art all her life. Her parents recognized when she was but a toddler that she had a special gift, and they nurtured that gift by enrolling her in private art lessons. And she has been studying ever since. She just returned this month from a month long trip to Italy where she was studying Italian art. She received her fine arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and she has been painting ever since.
Linda is certainly no stranger to the Britt family. She has painted all of the Britt children and most of the grandchildren, and that is a big job to keep up with. Linda has asked me to speak on her behalf today and to tell you that she was honored to have been selected to paint the portrait, and that it was a labor of love, and that Judge Britt was a truly marvelous subject.
I will tell you as someone who has seen the portrait, she has truly captured the man that I have known for the last 15 years. Linda invited a group of us to preview the portrait and to offer criticism and make suggestions for change. And to her credit, we were unable to criticize. When you have got a group of lawyers in a room who are unable to criticize, you know you have accomplished your job, and you have accomplished it well.
Linda, I would ask you to stand and please be recognized.
And now, Judge Boyle, it is my honor and privilege to present the portrait of United States District Judge W. Earl Britt, and I would ask Mrs. Britt to please unveil it.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: We want to recognize Mrs. Britt to do the unveiling. That is a very important part.
(Portrait unveiled by Mrs. Britt)
Judge Britt, would you please don your robe and join your proper place on this panel? Now, let me say that you will all get a chance to view the portrait close up because it is going to be at the reception. It will promptly leave this room and be taken to the reception, so you will have plenty of opportunity to examine it.
All right, at this time we will continue with the program, and it is my privilege to recognize the Honorable Carroll Fox for comments.
JUDGE FOX: I don't leave home during duck season often, but I wanted to be here today. Today Earl Britt and I have been colleagues for 16 years, one month and eight days. And I am grateful for the association during this time as a teacher, advisor, a mentor and a friend—true friend. Moreover, his integrity, judicial temperament, his wisdom and compassion have been exemplary for those on the bench and to those who have aspirations to that office.
His portrait will be a constant reminder of judicial excellence and a sure inspiration to those administering justice throughout—within this courtroom and throughout the Eastern District of North Carolina. Personally and professionally, I thank Judge Britt for his past and his continuing service.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Thank you, Judge Fox. It is my privilege now to call on Judge Malcolm J. Howard of this court for his remarks.
JUDGE HOWARD: Thank you, Chief Judge Boyle. I am glad to have the opportunity to travel from Greenville to come here and join the family and friends and other jurists in celebrating this day with Judge Britt. We commonly refer to this as a hanging. Judge Roy Bean of Pacos, Texas allegedly said that every defendant should have the opportunity of a fair trial before he is hung. Judge Britt has had beautiful words stated about him today, not that they were needed in any fashion, but that is a trial of sort.
I have enjoyed hearing from the Senator and Eugene Boyce and Cliff, and we are honored to be here. It is my pleasure to have sat with him now for approximately 11 years. Thank you, Judge Britt.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: Thank you, Judge Howard. It is now my privilege to recognize the Honorable Earl Britt of this court for his remarks. Judge Britt.
JUDGE BRITT: Thank you, Chief Judge Boyle, Judge Howard, Judge Fox, Governor Hunt, Chief Justice Mitchell and Chief Judge Eagles and all the distinguished members of the state judiciary that are here; my colleagues on the federal bench, and Secretary of State Marshall.
Friends, one and all, although it is customary in this district and in the other district courts in the state of North Carolina for the portrait of a senior or retiring judge to be presented to the court, I must say that I have had many mixed emotions in the days and weeks leading up to this event. I have had feelings of joy knowing that I would be able to see so many friends, some of whom I have not seen in quite some time.
I have also had feelings of sadness, knowing that his event marks the beginning of the end of my judicial career. The events of the day, however, the kind words that have been said, the wonderful attendance of my family and friends, have made this truly the most memorable day of my life. I thank all of you for coming. All of you have honored me with your presence here.
Governor Hunt, when I was looking through some old files last night, I realized finding a note and telegram from you that you were also Governor of North Carolina when I was sworn in back on May 30th, 1980. You were not able to make the ceremony down in Lumberton, but you did send me a telegram, and I appreciated it very much. I kept it and treasure it.
On May 26th, 1980, four days before I took the oath, I wrote a letter to the President of the United States, Jimmy Carter, which read, "... Dear Mr. President, on Friday, May 30th, 1980, I will take the oath of office as United States District Judge of the Eastern District of North Carolina. I thank you for the opportunity that you have given me by appointing me to this important position.
"I pledge to you to give of my very best to justify the confidence you have shown in me." Eighteen and a half years later I feel that I have given my best. History, of course, will determine whether my efforts justified the President's confidence. I have, of course, made mistakes. Fortunately our system has a mechanism for correcting those mistakes, and that has been done on more than one occasion. I don't mean to say that I always agree that the Fourth Circuit, when it disagreed with me, was right; only that the Fourth Circuit has the last word.
The credit for whatever success I may have achieved in my judicial career, I gladly give to those who have helped shape and mold me as a person, as a lawyer, as a judge. I tried to learn from all with whom I have come in contact. I believe in the philosophy as expressed in L. D. Johnson, "Everyone who walks out of my life takes something, and I must be willing to have it so, for everyone who walks into my life, brings something."
I have been blessed with people who have walked into my life and brought something. First of all, my family. I come from a large family of seven children, six boys and one girl. My mother and father were caring parents who taught us the value of hard work and education, honesty and dedication to duty and respect for others. Four of my siblings survive, and two of them you have met are with us today.
I learned from and was inspired by each of them, and I thank them for the positive influence that they had on my life. I am also blessed with a wonderful wife, Judy, six children, who are present, as you have heard, and seven grandchildren. Judy has been a devoted companion and a helpmate with whom I have shared many joys and some sorrows. Her boundless energy keeps the entire family going. I am very grateful to her for her dedication, love and support.
Our blended family is a source of much pride for Judy and me. All of our children are here today, and you have met them, and each has succeeded in his or her own way, and I am very proud of all of them.
My teachers and professors. Little do we realize at the time the influence teachers and professors are having on us. Even though I graduated from a very small high school in Robeson County, down in Rowland, I was blessed with outstanding teachers, particularly in the important areas of English and history. This continued at Campbell Junior College and Wake Forest. Of critical importance was the impact of my law school professors, Dean Weathers, Professor Wiggins and Sizemore and Scarlett and Webster and many others had in shaping my career. I will be forever grateful for the pivotal role they had in preparing me for a life in the legal profession, both as a lawyer and as a judge.
My law school colleagues. You have heard something about this from two sources already, but I must say that I don't know whether we are unique or not, but my contemporaries in law school have maintained a relationship over the years that has, I believe, provided support for all of us. Many of us were fraternity brothers in undergraduate school or law school or both, and several of us have children who followed in our footsteps at Wake Forest, both in undergraduate and in professional careers.
To this day we maintain ourselves as a cohesive group, expanded to include others of Wake Forest heritage from years both before and after our experience. We meet at least twice yearly at our place down at Durant Island, courtesy of Jeff Batts and Doc Murphrey, and call ourselves the Deacon Fishing Bunch. Many of them are here today, and I appreciate very much their coming.
Also I am indebted to my bar colleagues back in Robeson County. When I first started the practice of law there, I was fortunate to be in that County where the bar was collegial and members were happy to assist each other, particularly a new lawyer, in any way possible. Many times I have sought and received advice from Murk Biggs or Bill Timberlake or Dick McLean or Horace Stacey or John Campbell and others who willingly shared their knowledge of the law with younger colleagues.
I have been shaped by state judges. My judicial career was profoundly influenced by the outstanding members of the state judiciary whom I practiced. And let me say at this point that back when I was practicing law, there was very little practice done in the Eastern District of North Carolina in federal court, so I had little opportunity to be there. My resident Superior Court Judge, Sandy McKinnon, swore me into the practice of law and presided over many trials in which I participated. His example and that of Hamilton Hobgood and Pou Bailey and Leo Carr and others, including John Martin and Ralph Walker, before whom I practiced, provided guidance to me when I first came on this bench.
My friends have influenced me. People in your profession cannot provide you with all of the support that you need. In fact, many of our staunchest supporters are friends and neighbors who provide us that respite that we need away from our daily routine. I have been truly blessed over the years with friends and neighbors to whom I could turn in time of need. Many of them are here today from Fairmont, Wilmington, Currituck, Lake Norman and I am deeply grateful for their friendship and their support.
I can't say enough about the influence that Frank Dupree had on my career, because when I came on the bench he was the only judge here for all practical purposes. Judge John Larkins had been sidelined with a very serious illness, and Judge Dupree took me under his wing and guided me and molded me, and was extremely helpful to me and was always willing to assist me in any way that I asked.
I am also grateful, and I acknowledge publicly now the support of my colleagues who are on the bench here with me and who have served with me for many years since their respective appointments to the bench.
My court staff. When I came to the bench, Rich Leonard was Clerk of Court. Bonnie Perdue was his Chief Deputy. Each of them had a profound influence on me in my beginning days as a judge. Although Bonnie retired many years ago, I continue to seek and receive the advice of Rich Leonard during not only his years as our Clerk, but also during the time when he was one of our magistrate judges and more recently and up until now one of our bankruptcy judges. I am grateful to him for all the support that he has given me.
David Daniel, our present Clerk, has also been very helpful to me. He is doing an outstanding job as our Clerk, and we are all fortunate to have a person of his caliber in this important position. I have been blessed with outstanding Court Reporters: Karen Starkings and Jo Bush, bless her heart, who is taking this proceeding today, and who took the proceeding when I was sworn in back in Lumberton in 1980, I think, Jo? This is correct, isn't it?
COURT REPORTER: I think so.
JUDGE BRITT: And Donna Tomawski. My Courtroom Deputies, Ann Goodwin and Jolie Skinner and Scott Cannon and Gayle McDowell have gone beyond the call of duty in anticipating my needs and assuring that the business of the court moved forward. In fact, Gayle has acted as a human shield for me. On one occasion a disgruntled defendant in a mental competency hearing picked up a bible lying on a table and threw it at me, only to have it intercepted by Gayle who was between us. One wag hearing about this was overheard saying that Judge Britt, he knew, has thrown the book at many defendants, but that is the first time he ever heard of a defendant throwing the book at Judge Britt.
I don't intend by naming these people in the Clerk's Office to exclude others who have been of invaluable assistance to me. Without Michael Brooks and Kathy Thompson and Cathy Wells and Cookie Wells and Susan McWhorter and many, many more, I simply could not have turned out the work that I have during these years. And there are other court personnel.
The Court has been fortunate to have outstanding leadership in its various divisions. I have already mentioned the Clerk's Office with whom a judge has the most direct contact; however, the probation and pretrial services and bankruptcy divisions of the court are extremely important in carrying out the court's business. They are led by Dan Martin in Probation, Ken Marshburn in Pretrial Services, and Chief Judge Tom Small and Judge Rich Leonard and Clerk, Peggy Deans of the Bankruptcy Court, to all of them I express my gratitude for their assistance.
And our magistrate judges have performed outstanding service to this court, and I am deeply grateful to them: Ken McCotter, Alex Denson, Wallace Dixon, Bill Mason and Louise Flannagan.
I have to take a moment to pay a special tribute to a wonderful lady named Ruby Freeman. Ruby is with us today. She first came to work with me when I was practicing law in Fairmont back in the 1960's. When I moved my practice to Lumberton in the early seventies, I asked Ruby if she would go with me, and she gladly did. When I received the nomination I asked her if she was willing to go with me to Fayetteville, where my duty station would be, and she did. And the first year she and I alternated daily driving from Lumberton to Fayetteville except on those occasions when I was holding court elsewhere.
In 1981 I decided to move to Raleigh, and I asked Ruby if she was ready to move again, and she was, and we came. She remained as my secretary until her retirement in 1994. She is the most loyal, devoted employee that I have ever had, and I am glad that she is here today so that I can publicly recognize her and thank her again.
Now that all law clerks are proficient in computers and we have the latest equipment available, the need for a secretary has been greatly lessened, so I have eliminated that position in my office. I have a part-time third law clerk and an Administrative Assistant, Fred Patton, who does yeoman work keeping my office running.
My law clerks. Those of you who are in the legal profession, and especially those of you who are involved in any way with the federal courts are aware of the tremendous contributions that law clerks make. They are the most indispensable cogs in the wheels of justice. Put simply, a federal judge, district or circuit, could not handle all the cases he or she is assigned without the assistance of these talented young men and women.
When I came on the bench I tried a bench trial before my first law clerk, Ed Walker, was able to come to work. So Judge Dupree loaned Jeff Howard to me for that case, and I have always considered Jeff to be one of my law clerks. And he is here, and I am grateful to him. Following Ed Walker, 21 others came and went, most serving two-year terms, but all rendering outstanding dedicated service.
Most of them are here today, and I want to name them quickly: Susan Umstead, Gordon Widenhouse, Peter Pappas, Allison Brown Shafer, John Shafer, Sharon Spence, Jonathan Wood, Margo Bennett, Rose Kenyon, Dean Cho, Mary Morgan Reaves, Beth McKay, Susan Houser, Steve Epstein, Scott Wyatt, Tracy Davis, Katie Hord Simon, Amy Campbell Petty, Jessica Smith, Steve Newmark, John Burns and Jolynn Dellinger.
Katie, of course, is back with me now in a career position as my staff attorney. And I just couldn't do without her.
Senator Robert Morgan. People have often asked me over the years how one becomes a federal judge. My answer has always been know your United States Senator. You have heard Senator Morgan state the relationship that he and I have had over the years, and I won't repeat it. But I have always supported him for every public office which he has sought because I believed then, as I do now, that he is one of the most honest people that I have ever known. I appreciate the confidence that he had in me by recommending my appointment to the President. I appreciate him taking the time from his senatorial duties in 1980 to present me to the court at my installation ceremony, and I appreciate his being here today and the kind words he had to say.
I am sure that there are others who have had positive influences on my career and I am equally thankful to them. If I have omitted anyone who is present, I now publicly thank you as well.
Finally, let me express my appreciation to Linda Noah and to those who had a part in the presentation of this portrait. As you have heard, I have known Linda for quite a while, actually about 40 years. She has done portraits of most of my children and several of my grandchildren. Linda, I am still amazed at your ability to create a work of art, particularly when, as in this instance, you had so little with which to work.
My deep appreciation to my law clerks, friends and members of the bar who made this occasion possible. Thank you, one and all, and God bless you. God bless this court and God bless the United States.
CHIEF JUDGE BOYLE: I think the saying goes you want to close on a high note, don't you? Well, I am going to say very little to close because I can't get a higher note than that. I thank you, Judge Britt.
I think, though, as I hear everything today, I would be remiss in not pointing out to you Judge Britt is too modest, and we have talked about his life on the bench here in this district, to say much about the fact that he has not only been a great judge and a leader here in the Eastern District of North Carolina and in the state, but that the breadth of his achievement has reached out beyond. And those of you who aren't within the operations of the federal courts wouldn't have any cause to know that. But I can tell you for sure that this is the truth.
While he was Chief Judge for seven years during the eighties, he was a creative and innovative leader in this district and throughout the district, but more importantly, he was chosen by his fellow judges, the active and senior judges of the circuit, district and circuit, to represent us on the Judicial Conference, which he did for at least seven years, unless I am mistaken, from about 1990 to 1997, I believe. And that is a very important and critical position. The Judicial Conference governs the federal courts, so to speak. It is presided over by the chief justice and is a small unit representing each circuit.
And he also served for at least two years, I believe, as President of the Federal Judges Association, which is the National Association of Federal Judges, district and circuit, throughout the United States. And he was elected and selected by his peers to be the President of that organization and worked very closely with Congress, with the President on behalf of the courts nationally and internationally. So you need to know that as a point to touch on as we conclude these proceedings.
On behalf of the court, I am delighted to accept this portrait, and I promise you it will be permanently displayed in court, and to recognize that it has a meaning and a value to the court and to those who come before us beyond its mere temporal work. Why do these portraits hang in courtrooms? Well, they hang because they have a symbolic value. They have a symbolic value to those who come before the halls of justice. They represent in a large way the continuity of the past with the present and the future, and they document the life of those and the lives of those who have committed themselves to service and to the rule of law.
And on that basis, we are privileged to have Judge Britt's portrait. Thank you all for being here. You are invited to a reception, as indicated. I think you know how to get there. The portrait will be there. And if there is no further business I will call on the Clerk, Mr. Cannon, to close court.
(Proceedings closed at 5:25 p.m.)
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