H.R. No. 261
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, The Texas legal community lost one of its giants
with the passing of Starling Thomas Morris of Amarillo on October 4,
2021, at the age of 101; and
WHEREAS, Born in Penelope on November 12, 1919, Tom Morris
was the second son of James L. Morris and Alice B. Morris; he grew up
in Maypearl and attended North Texas Agricultural College and The
University of Texas Law School before World War II interrupted his
education; called up by the U.S. Navy Air Corps, he served with Air
Group 80 and flew the SB2C Helldiver and F6F Hellcat fighter from
the USS Ticonderoga and the USS Hancock; he also piloted an F4U-4
Corsair fighter-bomber in preparation for the attack on Japan;
along the way, he survived a midair collision that led to six months
in a hospital; he attained the rank of lieutenant senior grade
before his discharge; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Morris returned to UT Law, where he was an
editor of the Texas Law Review and a member of Chancellors and Order
of the Coif; upon graduation in 1946, he was elected to the faculty,
and he taught the school's first course on legal argument and
writing; in addition, he taught the torts class in a separate law
school that the university established for Black scholars; he began
practicing in Harlingen in 1948, and the following year, he moved to
Amarillo, where he joined the firm of Gibson, Ochsner, and Adkins,
as it was eventually known; upon its dissolution in 2003, he became
a shareholder in the Underwood Law Firm, and he continued to
practice there for the rest of his life; he was a generous mentor to
younger attorneys over the years; and
WHEREAS, Among numerous accomplishments, Mr. Morris won a
landmark Supreme Court case, Graham v. Deere, which established the
law of non-obvious subject matter in patent cases; the decision has
been cited in more than 30,000 cases and legal articles and was
reaffirmed by the highest court three times in recent years; he
successfully argued a long list of cases before the Texas Supreme
Court, the Texas Courts of Appeals, and the United States Court of
Appeals for the Fifth Circuit; admired for his ethics and
collegiality, as well as for his brilliance, he was named a Fellow
of the Texas Bar Foundation and the American College of Trial
Lawyers; his myriad accolades included the Texas Legal Legend Award
from the Litigation Section of the State Bar of Texas, the Chief
Justice Charles L. Reynolds Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Tom
Arnold Lifetime Achievement Award from the Intellectual Property
Section of the State Bar; and
WHEREAS, While the law was a source of endless fascination to
Mr. Morris, he was devoted above all to his treasured family; he
shared a fulfilling marriage of 68 years with his wife, Estella
Garnett Morris, until her passing in 2011, and he took great pride
in their two daughters, Linda and Vicki, and three granddaughters,
Skye, Autumn, and Aureóle; in his free time, he was an avid golfer,
and he achieved a single-digit handicap and scored five holes in
one; he served as president of the Texas Tri-State Senior Golf
Association and played in its tournament for many years, and he was
twice the recipient of the Colonel Bogey Award; the Amarillo
Country Club recognized him for six decades of work to improve its
golf course, and a plaque was placed at the Starter's Shack honoring
his contributions; and
WHEREAS, Although Tom Morris is deeply missed, he leaves
behind a remarkable professional legacy, as well as numerous
friends and loved ones whose lives are far richer for having known
him; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas
Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby pay tribute to the memory
of Starling Thomas Morris and extend sincere condolences to the
members of his family: to his daughters, Linda Lee Willard and Vicki
Rey Fineran; to his granddaughters, Skye, Autumn, and Aureóle
Fineran; to his sister, Alice Beth Willis; and to his other
relatives and friends; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of
Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Starling
Thomas Morris.
Price
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 261 was unanimously adopted by a
rising vote of the House on October 18, 2021.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House