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Marj Riley

Peter Marshall (1981-82)

Wedding picture of Peter Marshall and his wife Roberta. Peter is wearing a dark suit with a red tie. Roberta is wearing a white, long-sleeved dress and holding a single red rose. They are standing next to Justice Abrahamson, who is wearing her judicial robes.

In reading the notes from other clerks I was struck by two things.  First, Justice Abrahamson certainly had some kind of magic touch when officiating over her clerks’ nuptials.  Earlier this year Roberta and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary. Second, like many of her other clerks, Justice Abrahamson taught me how to write – really write.  I had to chuckle when I read Peter Chen’s description of arriving in chambers one morning after a late night to find his latest draft rearranged and in pieces on the floor.  One of my most indelible memories of my time with Justice […]

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Molly Martin (1977-78)

Four women in formal dresses smile towards the camera in a candid, outdoor wedding photo.

When Kirbie Knutson and I began clerking for Justice Abrahamson in September 1977, she was not only the newest member of the court, but also — since hers was the only chambers with a magnetic card typewriter — the most technologically advanced. I point this out to dazzle Peter Chen, whose recollections of Shirley’s “ruthless” commitment to ever more research, analysis, revision, and re-editing we all can relate to and love. Just imagine “ruthless” before computers, Peter! (Spoiler alert: She made it work.) I am not surprised that so many of Shirley’s clerks have written to describe, with fondness and […]

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