The Era of Modernization Begins

In her concluding remarks on the history of the Idaho State Bar in the 1970s, Judge Jessica Lorello fittingly told us to “[s]tay tuned for the 1980s.” I say fittingly because, as we know, the 1980s saw the beginning of heavy metal and hair bands and (thankfully, some might say) the end of disco. Copious amounts of Aqua Net and lengthy guitar solos aside, the 1980s also saw the Idaho State Bar enter the age of modernization.

The Beginning of the Digital Age

Thankfully having survived the great “Letter Size v. Legal Size” controversy of the 1970s (or perhaps because of it), Idaho attorneys were primed for the next technological advancement using letter sized paper: the facsimile. By all accounts, being able to quickly transmit letters and documents in seconds, as opposed to using the U.S. Mail, was a game changer for attorneys. But something even greater for the practice of law was just on the horizon, as the 1980s saw the development and use of the personal computer. Adding to that was the was the invention of the “LAN” or Local Area Network, which allowed law firms to start internally sharing documents and printers and, arguably the ultimate game changer of them all: electronic mail. In a 1985 article in The Advocate entitled “Lawyers Say ‘Hi’ to High-Tech,” Idaho attorney and executive director and chief operating officer of the American Bar Association Thomas H. Gonser sounds a bit like Nostradamus, remarking that electronic mail “unlocks the door to the immense amount of information gathering and information transfer that truly responds to the lawyer’s everyday needs.”[i] Given the amount of electronic mail I receive daily, I both agree and disagree with his sentiment.

The Idaho State Bar got in on the action beginning in 1985, reviewing information and reports for “potential options of vendors and uses of computerization of membership records, accounting records and as many facets as possible of Bar office activity.”[ii] The cost was significant— $80,000—so much so that the Idaho State Bar actually took out a four year loan in order to help pay off the equipment. On October 11, 1985, the Board of Commissioners adopted a Resolution to purchase the computer system “to meet the recordkeeping, word processing, and accounting needs of the Idaho State Bar to fulfill its duties….”[iii] By the end of the decade most attorneys and law firms in the state had some type of computerized system.

Creation of the Idaho Court of Appeals

In 1980, the Idaho Legislature passed the “Idaho Court of Appeals Act,” forming the Idaho Court of Appeals.[iv]  The Court of Appeals was created to alleviate the significant backlog of appellate cases that had developed at the Idaho Supreme Court as a result of Idaho’s rapid population growth in the 1970s. At one point, Idaho had the unflattering distinction of having the longest reported delay in processing appeals of any U.S. state.[v] The Court of Appeals, consisting of a Chief Judge and two Associate Judges, officially opened its doors in 1982. The first judges appointed to the new Court were Jesse R. Walters (Chief Judge), Donald R. Burnett, and Roger Swanstrom. On its first day of operation, the Idaho Supreme Court assigned the Court of Appeals a whopping 206 appeals. Within three years, the Court of Appels helped to reduce the average length of time it took to process appeals in Idaho by ten months.[vi]

The Idaho Rules of Evidence Take Shape

The lack of formality in the rules of evidence also resulted in a lack of consistency for Idaho attorneys. Indeed, as late as the 1960s, attorneys were still using (and having sustained) general objections such as “irrelevant, immaterial, and incompetent.”[vii] To help combat the problem, beginning in 1980, the Idaho State Bar Commissioners appointed the Idaho State Bar Evidence Committee. The Committee, chaired by Merlyn W. Clark and consisting of numerous members of Idaho’s bench and bar, commenced deliberations on February 9, 1980. The Committee eventually met 23 times over a three-year period and on December 16, 1983, produced a proposed set of the Idaho Rules of Evidence for commentary from a wide-ranging group of public and private individuals and groups including all three branches of Idaho’s government. The Committee then took the various comments it received and made revisions “to accommodate suggestions and criticisms of the tentative draft.” On August 20, 1984, the Committee submitted its final report and draft to the Idaho Supreme Court.  After a few more alterations by the Idaho Supreme Court, the Court officially entered an Order on January 8, 1985, officially adopting and implementing the Idaho Rules of Evidence effective July 1, 1985.[viii]

 The Great Advertising Debate(s)

In 1977, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Bates v. State Bar of Arizona that commercial advertising by attorneys was protected speech under the First Amendment.[ix] Meeting minutes of the Idaho State Bar Commissioners throughout the 1980s reflect that the Commissioners struggled with what could (or should) be allowed insofar telephone directory advertising,[x] advertising in a city in which an attorney had no office,[xi] and how do deal with the issue of when a local law firm (Langroise & Sullivan) merged with a firm from another state (Holland & Hart).[xii] Although it seems a bit odd to think about the Bar Commissioners’ consternation in light of the modern day internet,[xiii] there is no question that a good deal of effort and were spent on navigating with the technological advances in how attorneys conducted their business.

A Series of Notable “Firsts” for Women

The 1980s also marked a number of notable “firsts” for women in Idaho legal history.  On April 18, 1983, Deborah Ann Bail took the oath of office and became Idaho’s first female district court judge.[xiv] Bail served as a district court judge in Ada County for nearly 40 years, taking senior judge status in 2021. That same year, Joanne P. Rodriquez became the first Hispanic woman to be admitted to the Idaho State Bar.[xv] In 2022, Rodriguez retired from a distinguished career with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Idaho, where she mentored numerous Idaho Assistant U.S. Attorneys.[xvi]

In 1986, Kaye O’Riordan became the first woman to serve on the Idaho State Bar Board of Commissioners.[xvii] Two years later, O’Riordan would become Idaho’s first woman to serve as President of the Idaho State Bar.  Also in 1986, Ida Leggett, who would later be appointed as Idaho’s first African American jurist, became Idaho’s first African American woman lawyer.[xviii]  That same year, Merrily Munther became the first woman President of the Idaho Law Foundation.[xix]

Conclusion

Just as Prince sang in (arguably) the greatest rock power ballad of the 1980s (“Honey, I know, I know the times are changing…. It’s time we all reach out for something new”), the 1980s saw change take place for the Idaho State Bar and its members—change that was rapid, meaningful, and in many cases long overdue. And equally significant, the 1980’s also set the stage for what would come next. No, not just the grunge era; rather, the 1980s set the stage for the ever-increasing pace and modernization that in large part defines our modern-day practice of law. But, like even the best of guitar solos, the 1980s had to come to an end. So, bring on the 1990s!

Chris Graham was born in Washington D.C. In 1973, before he was a year old, his parents moved to Idaho, where Chris’ dad had been a smokejumper in the 1950s and 60s.  The family settled in New Plymouth, buying a farm. Chris graduated from New Plymouth High School in 1991. He attended Boise State University, graduating in 1995 with a B.A. in History.  Chris later attended the University of Idaho College of Law, graduating cum laude in 2000, where he also served as Editor-in-Chief of the Idaho Law Review.

Following graduation, Chris clerked for Idaho Supreme Court Justice Jesse R. Walters. He is currently a partner at Brassey Crawford, PLLC, where he maintains an active civil trial and alternative dispute resolution practice. Chris is the current Chairperson of the Idaho Legal History Section. 

[i] Thomas H. Gonser, Lawyers Say ‘Hi’ to High-Tech, 29 (7) Advocate 11 (1986).

[ii] Idaho State Bar Board of Commissioner Meeting Minutes, June 11-12, 1985. One of the many things I enjoy about doing historical research is that you never know for certain what you may uncover. Sometimes the information is maddening. Sometimes it is perplexing. Sometimes it is humorous. Sometimes it is a mix of all of these things. And sometimes you find a nugget of great personal interest. Such is the case when I was researching the Board of Commissioner Meeting Minutes for the 1980s and discovered that, as part of its investigation into the benefits of computerization, the Idaho State Bar hired my father-in-law, Gary Scarlett (who owned a computer consulting business), to provide an axillary study.

[iii] Idaho State Bar Board of Commissioner Meeting Minutes, October 11, 1985.

[iv] Idaho Code § 1-2401 et. seq.

[v] See Carl F. Bianchi, “The 1980s: Common Threads,” in Justice for the Times, ed. Carl F. Bianchi, 216-17 (Boise: Idaho Law Foundation, Inc. 1990).

[vi] Report to Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter and the 2^nd Regular Session of the 62^nd Idaho Legislature (available at https://isc.idaho.gov/annuals/2013/2013-CourtOfAppeals.pdf).

[vii] John Rumel and Tim Gresback, “Avoid These Eleven Common Evidentiary Mistakes,” 60(10) Advocate 37 (2017).

[viii] Idaho Supreme Court Order Adopting Idaho Rules of Evidence, January 8, 1985.

[ix] 433 U.S. 350 (1977).

[x] The Idaho State Board of Commissioner Meeting Minutes for January 11, 1980 reflect significant discussion took place with regard to whether lawyer advertising should take place in the Mountain Bell telephone directory, what type of advertising would be permissible (and what type of advertising would not).

[xi] Id.

[xii] Idaho State Bar Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes, Dec. 6, 1984.

[xiii] This seems especially true considering that nearly every attorney and/or firm in Idaho now has a website that “promotes” the attorney/firm’s supreme skill and legal prowess.  For example, while my own law firm’s website describes our firm as having “Idaho’s Preeminent Civil Trial Attorneys,” the attorneys at Duke Evett, PLLC, whose firm website refers to the firm as “Idaho’s Premier Trial Team,” may respectfully disagree.

[xiv] See Debora Kristensen Grasham, “The First Women of Idaho’s Bench and Bar,” Western Legal History, Vol. 32, No. 1, 96-97 (available at https://njchs.org/current-issues/).

[xv] Id. at 117.

[xvi] Press Release “U.S. Attorney Hurwitt Appoints Leadership Team,” Sept. 6, 2022.

[xvii] See Grasham at 125.

[xviii] See “Ida Leggett: First African American Woman Admitted to the Idaho Bar,” Idaho Legal History Newsletter, Spring 2017, at 3.

[xix] See Grasham at 125.