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Regular Session, 2012 ENROLLED
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 58
BY SENATOR AMEDEE AND REPRESENTATI VE EDWARDS
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON
To commend Chief Justice Burrell Johnston Carter of the First Circuit Court of Appeal upon
his retirement and for his service to the legal community and to the citizens of
Louisiana.
WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter was born in Baton Rouge on June 17, 1935, to
Robert T. Carter and Elizabeth Johnson Carter; and
WHEREAS, he married Helen Bridges on June 7, 1959, and they had two children,
Robert J. Carter and Elizabeth Carter Peak; and
WHEREAS, they have five grandchildren, Taylor Carter Peak, David Kramer Peak,
Helen Ruth Carter, Robert Burrell Carter, and Jessica Ledet; and
WHEREAS, he attended Greensburg High School and graduated in 1953 as the
valedictorian of his senior class; and
WHEREAS, upon graduation, Chief Justice Carter attended Louisiana State
University and was selected as a member of the Phi Kappa Phi honor society; and
WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter graduated from the Louisiana State University
School of Law in 1958 as its Valedictorian and was a member of the Phi Delta Phi legal
fraternity; and
WHEREAS, he received the LSU School of Law Honors Award and the LSU School
of Law Criminal Law Award, and in 1987, was inducted into the Paul M. Hebert Law Center
Hall of Fame; and
WHEREAS, he attended Basic Army Administration School in Fort Ord, California,
in 1959 and took the Judge Advocate General's Corps Civil Law Course in 1962 at the
University of Virginia; and
WHEREAS, he attended numerous Appellate Judges Conference Seminars sponsored
by the American Bar Association and took several writing courses at the National Judicial
College; and SCR NO. 58 ENROLLED
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WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter is a veteran of the Louisiana National Guard and
a veteran of the United States Army where he served as an active member of the Judge
Advocate General's Corps from 1961 to 1962 and as a reserve member from 1962 to 1968;
and
WHEREAS, in the United States Army he was a private in 1959, and attained the
rank of 1
st
Lieutenant in 1961 and captain in 1962, and was a member of the Reserve
Officers Association and the Military Order of World Wars; and
WHEREAS, he was a law clerk for the Honorable Robert Ellis at the First Circuit
Court of Appeal from March 1961 to September 1961 and from August 1962 to January
1963; and
WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter was a practicing attorney from 1958 to 1974, with
his major clients consisting of U.S. Farmer's Home Administration, Edward Hines Lumber
Company, Georgia Pacific Corporation, and Century Telephone & Telegraph; and
WHEREAS, he served as a state court district judge for the 21
st
Judicial District
Court from October 15, 1974 to December 31, 1981, and served as Chief Judge from 1979
to 1981; and
WHEREAS, he has served as a state appellate court judge for the First Circuit Court
of Appeal since January 1, 1982 and served as Chief Judge from January 1, 1999 to
December 31, 1999, and from August 1, 2001, to the present time; and
WHEREAS, he served as Justice Ad Hoc for the Louisiana Supreme Court in 1982
and 1995 and as Judge Ad Hoc for the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal in 1989; and
WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter was admitted to practice before the Louisiana
Supreme Court in 1958; the United States District Court, Eastern District, in 1959; the
United States Supreme Court in 1962; the United States Court of Military Appeals in 1962;
and the United States Court of Appeal, Fifth Circuit, in 1973; and
WHEREAS, he has been a member of the 21
st
Judicial District Bar Association from
1959 to the present time and served as its vice-president from 1968 to 1969 and as its
president from 1970 to 1972; and
WHEREAS, he is also a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association, the
American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the Baton Rouge Bar Association, SCR NO. 58 ENROLLED
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the American Judicature Society, the Louisiana Council of Juvenile Court Judges, the
National Council of Juvenile Court Judges, the National College of Probate Judges, the
American Judges Association, and the Louisiana Judicial Council; and
WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter has unselfishly dedicated countless hours to many
civic organizations, including: the Greensburg Methodist Church, the American Red Cross,
the Boy Scouts of America, the American Legion, and the Capital Area Agency on Aging;
and
WHEREAS, he merits recognition for his many contributions and accomplishments
during the course of his highly effective career and for the deep sense of pride he has
brought to all who have worked with him and whose lives he has touched with his
extraordinary honesty and integrity; and
WHEREAS, Chief Justice Carter will remain an inspiration to his fellow citizens for
the vital contributions he has made in his career of highly effective public service, and he
merits the highest commendation and most sincere congratulations for his unforgettable
contributions to the state, whose citizens will long reap the benefits of his incomparable
legacy of integrity, leadership, and excellence.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
commend Chief Justice Burrell Johnston Carter upon his retirement from the First Circuit
Court of Appeal, does hereby recognize and record for posterity his accomplishments and
highly productive service, does hereby express to him the enduring appreciation of the state's
citizens, and does hereby extend to him best wishes for continued success and happiness in
all of his future endeavors.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to Chief
Justice Burrell Johnston Carter.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES