Miriam Shearing

Miriam Mattinen Shearing[1] (born Ellen Miriam Mattinen;[2] February 24, 1935) is an American lawyer and retired judge in Nevada. Shearing was the first woman to serve as a Nevada district judge and as justice and chief justice on the Supreme Court of Nevada (1993–2005).[3][4]

Miriam Shearing
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nevada
In office
1997
Justice of the Supreme Court of Nevada (Seat A)
In office
January 1993 – January 2005
Preceded byJohn C. Mowbray
Succeeded byJames Hardesty
Chief Judge of the Eighth Judicial District Court of Nevada
In office
1986
Judge of the Eighth Judicial District Court of Nevada
In office
January 1983 – January 1993
Personal details
Born
Ellen Miriam Mattinen

(1935-02-24) February 24, 1935
Waverly, New York, U.S.
SpouseSteven P. Shearing (m. 1954–d. 2011)
Children3
EducationCornell University (BA)
Boston College (JD)

Early life and education

She was born on February 24, 1935, in Waverly, New York.[5] Shearing grew up on a farm near Spencer, New York, the oldest of three children.[6] She was the daughter of Eino Olavi and Lillian Sophia (Petaja) Mattinen.[5]

Her parents were Finnish American, and she spoke Finnish in the home.[6] Shearing graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy; at Cornell she met her husband, Steven Shearing.[6] She then graduated from Boston College Law School, where she took night classes while her husband attended medical school.[6]

Career

After graduation, the Shearings moved to California, where Steven Shearing completed his medical internship and residency, and then lived in Pakistan, where Steven Shearing worked for CARE.[6] The Shearings moved to Nevada in 1969, and Shearing was admitted to the bar in Nevada that year, becoming the fiftieth woman admitted to practice in the state.[6][7] Shearing practiced for several years in Las Vegas, and became a juvenile court referee in 1975.[6] Shearing successfully ran for a seat on the justice court, after the Clark County Commission (which was opposed to a woman serving on the court) refused to appoint her to an open seat.[6]

In 1977, Shearing became a justice of the peace in Clark County.[8] In 1983, Shearing became a Nevada District Court judge, the first woman to do so[8] In 1986, Shearing became chief judge on the court and served as president of the Nevada District Judges Association.[8]

In 1992, Shearing won an election to the Nevada Supreme Court, defeating District Judge J. Charles Thompson, the one-time favorite, 43 percent to 29 percent.[8][9] Shearing was an advocate of abortion rights who during the election campaign urged "a female voice" on the court.[8] The election was deeply bitter in tone, which the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline criticized, prompting Shearing and Thompson to apologize and agree "to refrain from negative campaigning in the future."[9] Shearing became the first woman on the Nevada Supreme Court, and the 40th serving female state supreme court justice.[8]

Shearing served on the court for twelve years, and was named chief justice in 1997.[6] She ran unopposed for reelection in 1998.[9] Shearing announced in April 2003 that she would not seek a third term,[9] and retired on January 4, 2005, at the conclusion of her second term in office.[6]

Shearing said that upon retirement she would divide her time between Las Vegas and Incline Village.[9]

Personal life

Shearing was married to husband Dr. Steven Shearing (d. 2011), an ophthalmologist and pioneer in cataract surgery.[7] They had three children.[5]

In February 1984, the Shearings were part of a group of landowners who donated 1,470 acres of land near Pioche, Nevada, to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Valued at $882,000, the donation was at that time one of the largest gifts in UNLV history.[10]

See also

References
  1. Eveliina Olsson, The image of the American legal system is one-sided: Finnish-American judges emphasised the unglamorous aspects of their work, Universitas Helsingiensis (Winter 2006).
  2. New York State, Birth Index, 1881-1942
  3. Michael Wayne Bowers, The Sagebrush State: Nevada's History, Government, and Politics (3rd ed.: University of Nevada Press, 1996).
  4. "NNWLA Celebrates Women's History Month". NNWLA SCOOP the Newsletter of the Northern Nevada Women Lawyers Association. NNWLA. 11 (3): 2. March 2008.
  5. Who's Who, Marquis (1983). Who's Who in American Law. Marquis Who's Who. ISBN 9780837935034.
  6. Berkheiser, Mary E. (2005). "Justice Miriam Shearing: Nevada's Trailblazing Minimalist". Scholarly Works, Paper 379. UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  7. Doug McMurdo, Dr. Steven Shearing, 76, eye surgery pioneer, dies, Las Vegas Review-Journal (July 12, 2011).
  8. Phillip Hager, Nevada Elects First Woman to High Court, Los Angeles Times (November 5, 1992).
  9. Shearing to retire from state high court, Las Vegas Sun (April 30, 2003).
  10. Eugene P. Moehring, The University of Nevada, Las Vegas: A History (University of Nevada Press, 2007 ), p. 99.
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