Otto M. Kaus

Otto M. Kaus was born on January 7, 1920, in Vienna, Austria, and passed away on January 11, 1996.

In terms of his education, Kaus attended the University of London from 1937 to 1939. He then moved to the United States and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1942. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, he returned to his studies and graduated from Loyola Law School in 1949. He was admitted to the State Bar on June 7, 1949.

Kaus had a long and distinguished judicial career. He started as a Judge at the Los Angeles Superior Court, a position he held from December 2, 1961, to December 31, 1964, after being appointed by Governor Edmund G. Brown, Sr. He then served as an Associate Justice at the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division 3 from December 28, 1964, to December 16, 1966. He was promoted to Presiding Justice of the same court, Division 5, and served from December 16, 1966, to July 21, 1981. Finally, he was appointed as an Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, a position he held from July 21, 1981, to 1985.

In addition to his judicial roles, Kaus also had a significant professional background. He served in the U.S. Army from 1942 to 1945, rising from the rank of Private to Captain. After his military service, he worked at the law firm Chase, Rotchford, Downen & Drukker from 1949 to 1961. He also taught at Loyola Law School from 1950 to 1975 and at the University of Southern California from 1974 to 1976. After leaving the bench, he became a partner at Hufstedler & Kaus from 1986 to 1995, and then served as Of Counsel at Morrison & Foerster from 1995 to 1996.