Frank K. Richardson

Presiding Justice, October 1971-November 1974

Born February 13, 1914 in St. Helena, Richardson attended the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University (BA, 1935, LLB, 1938). After his admission to the California Bar November 1, 1938, Richardson entered private practice in Oroville. From 1942 to 1945, his legal career was on hold, while the US Army used his talents in Germany and France. After picking up two Battle Stars, Richardson resumed the private practice of law in Sacramento. In addition to private practice, Richardson taught at the McGeorge College of Law from 1946-1952. He was appointed Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, in 1971, a position in which he remained until his appointment to the California Supreme Court in 1974. Justice Richardson retired from the bench December 2, 1983, but remained active in the legal community as Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law, Pepperdine University, 1984, Nixon Fellow, School of Law, Whittier College, 1985, and as a private judge. He died at his Sacramento home of complications from Parkinson's disease, October 5, 1999