Idaho Legal History Section

Archived PDFs:

• October 12, 2023

*Materials from Section Meetings will now be available on Tradewing. Please click on the Tradewing ListServe tab above if you need further assistance.

Archived PDFs:

• March 14, 2023 – Agenda

Recent Features of Idaho Legal History

Idaho is featured in the recent issues of Western Legal History, the journal of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society. The issue is the culmination of a years’ long effort in partnership between the Section and our friends at NJCHS. It features writings on the great state of Idaho and includes pieces on its history with an emphasis on the legal and the judicial landscape.

Visit their website for the full volume or click on the articles below.

• A True “Western Lawyer”: The Extraordinary Legal Career of Milton J. Helmick —Last Judge of the U.S. Court for China | Tom Westphal
• Applying History: A Historian’s Experiences in the Coeur d’Alene Water Cases | Thomas R. Cox
• Friendship Betrayed: Granville Stuart, Samuel T. Hauser, and the Seven Devils Mining Case | Clyde A. Milner II
• Idaho Scrapbook | Christian Winn
• Tumult to Order: The Federal Courts in North Idaho | Hon. Richard C. Tallman and Morgan D. Goodin
• Idaho Judges on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals | Hon. Ryan D. Nelson
• The First Women of Idaho’s Bench and Bar | Debora Grasham
• Idaho’s Courthouses: Past and Present | Robyn Lipsky and Katia Kiston

The Idaho Legal History Section started out as the Idaho Legal History Society (ILHS). The ILHS was officially disbanded as an organization in June 2021 to become a section of the Idaho State Bar.

The ILHS was organized in 2005 by Chief Judge B. Lynn Winmill and then State District Judge and retired U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald E. Bush, United States District Court, District of Idaho.  Its founding members are Byron Johnson, former Idaho Supreme Court Justice; The Honorable Ronald J. Wilper, retired Fourth Judicial District, State of Idaho; Rita Ryan, Judith Austin, Tom McCabe, Boise attorney; Betty Richardson, former United States Attorney; Russ Heller, Boise Public Schools and Susie Boring-Headlee, Parsons, Behle & Latimer.

The group discovered that many people have been quietly preserving Idaho’s legal history on their own, and many more wanted to be part of the effort. From these efforts, the ILHS was born.

An important component of the Idaho Legal History Society is the Oral History Project.

From territorial days until current times, Idaho’s justice system has been peopled with extraordinary and colorful figures who exhibit great intellect, erudition and legendary exploits. Their stories — and the knowledge that they have about the great moments and occasional foibles of our lawyers, judges, clerks and others — deserve to be gathered and saved for the future.

The process of taking an oral history is not only interesting, but also educational. It offers an opportunity for lawyers to learn from other lawyers and judges who have made a career and a life in the law.

The Society has purchased high-quality video and audio equipment. The Idaho Historian has trained more than twenty interviewers in various locations in the state, and there are opportunities for further training for lawyers and judges interested in participating in this worthwhile project.

With the support of their national organization, the Idaho Court Reporters have graciously agreed to transcribe oral history interviews to gain continuing education credit. Boise State University students and graduates of the legal secretary program, and, in the future, other university legal secretary students and graduates, have also agreed to transcribe oral history interviews.

The Society board has appointed a committee dedicated to the oral history project. Their job is to organize and implement a process that will appear “seamless” to volunteer interviewers who need advice and support as they plan and carry out their interviews. The committee has also identified over 50 Idaho lawyers and judges –those “narrators” whose compelling stories must be captured soon for the enlightenment, education and enjoyment of future generations.

Persons interested in participating in the Oral History Project, as an interviewer, narrator (story teller), or transcriber, may contact any of the following committee members:

Oral History Committee Members:

Dianne Cromwell

Stephen W. Kenyon, Clerk of Court

Christopher J. Cuneo

Oral History Resources:

Handbook for Interviewers & Transcripts (Archived PDF)

Judge and Attorney Oral History Index

Non-Attorney Oral History Index

The Advocate November/December 2024

The Advocate November/December 2022

The Advocate November/December 2020

The Advocate November/December 2018

Best Article Awards (Idaho State Bar)

The Advocate November/December 2016

The Advocate November/December 2014

The Advocate September 2013

The Advocate November/December 2011

The Advocate November/December 2010

The Advocate November/December 2009

The Advocate November/December 2008

The Advocate November 2007

The Advocate December 2006

To access the full archive of online Advocate issues, visit our Advocate page and click the “Online Archive” button, then search for the issue you’re looking for.

In 2007, the Idaho Legal History Society created the Byron J. Johnson Award to recognize individuals whose contributions have significantly advanced the purposes of the Idaho Legal History Society in fostering understanding and appreciation for Idaho’s legal history.

The award, named after Idaho Supreme Court Justice Byron J. Johnson, who passed away in December 2012, is in recognition of the many years of service that he provided in collecting, preserving and disseminating information regarding Idaho’s rich legal history.

Award Recipients:

2007 – Rita Ryan, Founding Chair of ILHS Oral History Project

Mike Silva, Spontaneous Productions, Inc.; Writer/Director,
The Gate on 16th Avenue

Susie Boring-Headlee, Founding ILHS Secretary/Treasurer
Producer, The Gate on 16th Avenue

2008 – Dave Metcalf, Author and Presenter of Historical Presentation of Diamondfield Jack

2009 – Scott W. Reed, Barry McHugh and Teresa McHugh, Historical Art Committee,
U.S. Federal Courthouse, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

2010 – Gary Stallones, Original Developer and Webmaster of ILHS Website

2011 – Claudia Druss, Debora K. Kristensen and Eric White

2012 and 2013 No Recipients

2016 – J. Walt Sinclair and Nancy Hammond

2017- Honorable Ronald J. Wilper

2021- Hon. B. Lynn Winmill, U.S. District Judge and Hon. Ronald E. Bush, U.S. Magistrate Judge

Index to ISB (1921-1974)

ISB Vol. 1, 1921

ISB Vol. II, 1923

ISB Vol. I, 1925

ISB Vol. II, 1926

ISB Vol. III, 1927

ISB Vol. IV, 1928

ISB Vol. V, 1929

ISB Vol. VI, 1930

ISB Vol. VII, 1931

ISB Vol. VIII, 1932

ISB Vol. IX, 1933

ISB Vol. X, 1934

ISB Vol. XI, 1935 & Judicial Section Vol. I

ISB Vol. XII, 1936 & Judicial Section Vol. II

ISB Vol. XIII, 1937 & Judicial Section Vol. III

ISB Vol. XIV, 1938 & Local Bar Sections

ISB Vol. XV, 1939 & Local Bar Sections

ISB Vol. XVI, 1940

ISB Vol. XVII, 1941

ISB Vol. XVIII, 1942

ISB Vol. XIX, 1944

ISB Vol. XX, 1946

ISB Vol. XXI, 1947

ISB Vol. XXII, 1948

ISB Vol. XXIII, 1949

ISB Vol. XXIV, 1950

ISB Vol. XXV, 1951

ISB Vol. XXVI, 1952

ISB Vol. XXVII, 1953

ISB Vol. XXVIII, 1954

ISB Vol. XXVIX, 1955

ISB Vol. XXX, 1956

ISB Vol. XXXI, 1957

ISB Vol. XXXII, 1958

ISB Vol. XXXIII, 1959

ISB Vol. XXXIV, 1960

ISB Vol. XXXV, 1961

ISB Vol. XXXVI, 1962

ISB Vol. XXXVII, 1963

ISB Vol. XXXVIII, 1964

ISB Vol. XXXIX, 1965

ISB Vol. XL, 1966

ISB Vol. XLI, 1967

ISB Vol. XLII, 1968

ISB Vol. XLIII, 1969

ISB Vol. XLIV, 1970

ISB Vol. XLV, 1971

ISB 1972 Annual Meeting

ISB Business Session 1972 Annual Meeting

ISB Business Session 1973 Annual Meeting

Outlines, Resolution, and Reports, 1973

ISB Business Session 1974 Annual Meeting

Idaho Bar Transcripts Notes

1923 – Mandatory Integrated Bar Statute passed, but subject to challenge. Revised and enacted in 1925.

Volume II (1926) and Volume III (1927) of the Proceedings of the Idaho State Bar were bound together in one volume and contain one Index, located at the back of Volume III.

The following courses were sponsored by the Family Law Section. They are available to watch on-demand (self-study) with 24/7 availability so you can easily view programs whenever and wherever it is convenient. Click on the course title to see the description of the course and the cost.

Crimes of the Last Century: Idaho’s Most Famous Trials – 1.0 CLE credits

A March Through Idaho’s Most Famous Appeals – 1.0 CLE credits

From Alston to NIL to Future Employment? Recent Legal Developments in College Athletics Governance – 1.5 CLE credits

The History of Idaho in the Ninth Circuit – 2021 Annual Meeting CLE – 1.5 CLE credits

Thank You to Our Lifetime Members

Donald L. and Karen Burnett

Susie Boring-Headlee

Ernest A. Hoidal

Nancy Luebbert

W. Marcus W. Nye

Charles A “Skip” Smyser

Other Multi-Year Members

Through 2022

Scott L. Wayman

Vivian Klein

Through 2023

Gregory B. LeDonne

Jennifer R. Mahoney

Laird B. Stone

Through 2024

William G. Dryden

Christopher J. Cuneo

Chantel Elkins

Hon. Timothy L. Hansen

Hon. James F. Judd

Linda Judd

Through 2026

Libby Smith

Through 2027

Hon. Nancy A. Baskin

*Please note that since becoming a practice section of the Idaho State Bar we are no longer accepting multi-year memberships. To become a member of the section please register with your annual licensing packet or use the online Section Registration Form.

If you are a member of the Idaho Legal History Section you may elect to participate in our group. We welcome you to this helpful service, by and for our members!

• Within 30 days of becoming a Section member, your email address will be added to the group You will need to activate your account; click here for a step-by-step guide to activating your account.
• If you do not wish to participate in the group, you may click “Opt out of all emails” in your account settings; click here for a guide. You may also contact Colleen Austin with any questions.

A Good Handing Spoiled

Advocate Best Article Award Winners

Biography: James H. Beatty

Coeur d’Alene Federal Courthouse

Duke University’s Legal History

First 50 Men in Idaho Law

First 50 Women in Idaho Law

Idaho Federal Courts 1863-2010

Idaho History Timeline

Idaho State Historical Society

Moscow’s Federal Courthouses

Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society

The Crime of the Century

The Naming of Idaho

The Trial of Big Bill Haywood

The Trial of the Century

2008 ILHS Annual Report

2009 ILHS Annual Report