Gerald Heaney

Gerald W. Heaney
Senior Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
In office
December 31, 1988 – August 31, 2006
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
In office
November 3, 1966 – December 31, 1988
Appointed byLyndon B. Johnson
Preceded bySeat established by 80 Stat. 75
Succeeded byJames B. Loken
Personal details
Born
Gerald William Heaney

(1918-01-29)January 29, 1918
Goodhue, Minnesota, U.S.
DiedJune 22, 2010(2010-06-22) (aged 92)
Duluth, Minnesota, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Minnesota (BSL, LLB)

Gerald William Heaney (January 29, 1918 – June 22, 2010) served for nearly forty years as a United States Circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, from his appointment by President Lyndon B. Johnson in November 1966 until his full retirement in August 2006.[1]

Between the end of World War II and his appointment to the federal bench, he rewrote the Free State of Bavaria's labor laws, and was a valued political advisor and organizer for several liberal Democratic politicians, including Hubert Humphrey, Adlai Stevenson, Orville Freeman, Eugene McCarthy, and Walter Mondale.[2] As an appellate court judge, Heaney typically favored broad interpretations of the Bill of Rights and civil rights, labor and employment rights statutes.

  1. ^ Remarks of James Oberstar, "Debate on H.R. 187", Congressional Record- House, February 7, 2007, pp. H1299–H1300.
  2. ^ Jeffrey Brandon Morris, Establishing Justice in Middle America: A History of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, 150 (U of Minnesota Press - Minneapolis: 2007) ISBN 0-8166-4816-6.