Hon. Matthew J. Jasen '39

Segment Synopsis: Intro by Les Foschio of outline of OH project; Intro of subject and group of questions as part of the background section; Background: Polish, parents born in Kalisz, 70 km from Warsaw. Emigrated in 1904. Russian occupation in partitioned Poland. Fled because of imminent war between Russia and Japan. Brother born in this country. Parents disliked Polish ghetto in NYC. Took train to Buffalo and stayed. Father--4 years formal education. Mother and Father could both read and write. Continuing self-education through libraries. Encouraged education for children. Attended public East High School. Went to Canisius College. 1936 entered law school. Downtown campus. Lived Fillmore/Genesee. Campus 77 West Eagle. 2 classrooms, library and offices for professors. Many part time and adjunct profs. Dean Alden, Laidlaw full-time. Father tailor business. Own business in Poland. Learned English here. Mother went to night school to learn. Father 30 when arrived here. Professionals in family? Uncle-engineer; Mother's brother a priest in Poland. Attended School 24; attended Transfiguration School 7-8th grade; East High; Canisius; UB; Financing? Father's business; chief tailor for Wm H Lyons, custom tailoring in Morgan Bldg., now Rath Bldg. Best clientele in the city, Bishop Turner, Geo. Rand, Harriman; enjoyed employment even through difficult years. Helped with tuition at Canisius $250/yr. Worked in various jobs, library as page boy 20 cents to 19 cents/hr; worked Broadway Market Saturdays 3.75/day. Single when he went to law school.

Keywords: Alden, Carlos; Buffalo History; Canisius High School; Choosing UB Law School; Eagle Street Campus; Employment / Jobs / Wages; Ethnicity / Diversity; Faculty / Professors; Family; Father; Financial Support; Harriman, Lewis; Immigration; Laidlaw, William; Mother; Occupations; Poland; Tuition; Turner, Bishop; UB Law School general; Value of Education

Subjects: FAMILY HISTORY

Segment Synopsis: Law school cost, faculty and intellectual tradition, admission process; role models of neighborhood lawyers; Mother's goals for him and preconceived ideas/ stereotypes of lawyers; "Harvard People" Francis Shea dean, Jasen was part of first class. Taught to think like a lawyer. Mark DeWolfe Howe, Louis Jaffe, Ernest Brown, additions to staff full-time. Philip Halpern practicing lawyer taught Torts, future interests, and real property. Excellent teacher--conveyed law he was teaching. Judge and Dean later. Perceptions of lawyers; impressed by lawyers in the neighborhood; intelligent, educated; Anecdote of mother wanting him to become a Catholic priest. Overheard parents arguing over future. Two year course to go to law school. No degree necessary to go. 1 year changed to 2 year; 3/3 option in the fifties--2 degrees in 6 years. Expectations of law school. Satisfied with choice; Mother asked him to promise to be an honest lawyer. Mother prejudiced against lawyers.

Keywords: Anecdote; Application process; Choosing UB Law School; Curriculum; Discrimination / Prejudice; Eagle Street Campus; Faculty; Halpern, Philip; Intellectual Tradition; Law Professor; Legal Education; Little Harvard; Mother; Neighborhood; Perceptions; Religion; Role Models; Shea, Francis; Torts; Tuition; UB Law School general; UB Preparation

Subjects: EDUCATION

Segment Synopsis: Neighborhood lawyers as role models and ethnic divide in law practices; choosing UB Law School and application process, makeup of student body, attrition and outside social life, other jobs, study habits. Why choose UB? Finances--UB only option available to him. Might not have gone without UB being here. Applied and accepted; Above average grades; No LSAT, no entrance exam; No recommendations needed. No special interviews. 75 students start, 8 women; WNY and a few from other parts of state; class reduced 2nd year to about 55; 45 graduate. Not much socializing; Had job after last class; worked as a postal clerk--civil service; worked full-time; Halpern organized class well;

Keywords: Application process; Attrition; Buffalo History; Choosing UB Law School; Class Composition; Employment / Jobs / Wages; Ethnicity / Diversity; Halpern, Philip; LSAT; Law Students; Neighborhood; Pawlowski, Louis; Social Life; Tuition

Subjects: UB LAW AS STUDENT

Segment Synopsis: Overview of classes, faculty he took in law school, friendships, academics, changes in law education and law practice; Little to do except study and go to class; no real social place; campus downtown; Social friendships formed by compatible thinking, station in life. Bill Beyer and Cliff Boland (John Curtin), studied together. Fond memory? Recall friendships that lasted. Only 5 left from class of 1939. Favorite class/ least favorite; tortes and criminal law; Admiralty course taught by DeWitt Clinton ancestor, adjunct faculty, worked at Buffalo Savings Bank. Admiralty not least favorite. Torts full year-3 hours a week. Courtroom experience, would go to court to watch notorious or famous cases; insights in application of law/practice. Increase in litigiousness, insurance. Non-collectible cases. Student culture, many worked outside of school, some firemen worked downtown; some social activity. Advisors? No. Not common. Did not utilize. Impact of law school, never considered dropping out. Graduates 13 in class.

Keywords: Admiralty Law; Alden, Carlos; Boland, John C; Caliber of Students; Choosing UB Law School; Classes; Clinton; Deans; Faculty; Heffernan, John; Law Courses; Law Students; Legal Education; Litigation; Peers; Quit; Significant Cases; Social Life; Specialized Training; Student Culture; Study Habits; UB Academic Advisors; UB Preparation

Subjects: UB LAW AS STUDENT

Segment Synopsis: Bar Exam, entering practice, career v. academic success, other jobs, Depression, ethnicity and Ivy League competition; Bar examiner Philip Wixer; John Wixer, son. Heffernan joins firm paid 25/month. Others paid $5/week hard to live on. No need for lawyers during depression. Lawyers practice in morning. Played cards in afternoon. Goes out on own. Had to wait to pass the bar. Required to clerk for a year because he did not have a degree. Clerked with Louis Pawlowski, then Block and Cohen. Summer jobs: tennis re-stringing business; played tennis, captain of team at East High and Canisius. Post office job full time. ethnic, religious, gender obstacles?; Yes, Four main large offices only took Ivy League schools. No Jews, Poles or Italians. Tried to apply.

Keywords: Academic vs. Career Success; Alumni; Anecdote; Bar Admissions and Exams; Career / Early; Discrimination / Prejudice; Employment / Jobs / Wages; Great Depression; Law Firms; Legal Education; Occupations; Salary

Subjects: CAREER: LEGAL

Segment Synopsis: Entrance into military service, officers school, Started his own practice in 1939; Living at home, helping to support parents; single.Drafted in 1941; waited too long for commission; lawyers given opportunity to practice in military. Joined infantry; IQ test accepted into OCS Military service, training, role in occupied Germany, military government, Applied for military government duty for future occupation of Europe; accepted, sent to Harvard for 6 months equivalent to two years of specialized study on German history, culture, language. Went overseas 1944; studied at Furbingham University; B1, B2 bombs dropped, future military governors sent to Manchester to be safe. Become Military Governor; assigned as part of military government teams sent to every county under American zone, Director, 2-3 officers, 7 enlisted men; Assigned to capital of Stuttgart, goes to Heidenheim near Ulm. Col. Bill Dawson director, former dean Case Western in Ohio, close mentor. Departments divided between them. Jasen only lawyer, covered legal, trade and industry, financial areas. 150,000 population, most of the industry in area not destroyed. Arrived in 4/17/1945, war ended May 8. Worked with combat soldiers in France and Belgium. Judgeship in Occupied Germany, reference to Dole v. Dow, judge made law; Known as Civil Affairs officers; Became Military Government once crossing German border. Controlling Germans, problems with displaced persons retribution to Germans. Appointed as summary court judge over civilian population. No jurisdiction of the military population. Tried cases. Used portions of German criminal code, deleted Nazi law, implemented parts of US law--hybrid. Summary judge in addition to duties as Trade and Industry Officer, Financial Officer, Fine Arts and Culture Officer. Detachment became well known for innovations; Roosevelt's original plan for Germany was to reduce to agrarian; Roosevelt dies. John McCloy, Military Commissioner in Occupied Germany. McCloy calls meeting instruct Military Government Officers of change of policy to assistance model. Germany no longer enemy, real enemy was Russia/communism. Privy to info before widely publicized. Marshall Plan to rebuild Germany, in our interests. Law School training helped in understanding policy; Dole v. Dow Chemical judge-made law. Report made by Bergen, third party defendant; Right to report the case; Change rule to right to bring in third party; carried 5-2 including Bergen who wrote decision. Greatest professional achievement, turning point--being part of civilian judges of Occupied Germany in Heidelberg in 1946; 10 year legal experience requirement was waived for him by General Clay, had only 6 years. Heidenheim work helped his reputation. Was 31 years of age. Highlight of career to get that recognition. Presiding Judge of third judicial district; could impose sentence of up to 10 years. Paid 10,000/yr in 1946 tax free. US judges paid 12,000.

Keywords: Bergen; Career / Military Service; Civil Affairs Officer; Dole v. Dow Chemical; England; Europe; Financial Support; Germany; Germany, Heidelberg; Germany, Heidenheim; Greatest Achievement; Harvard University; Judiciary; Laws; Legal Education; Marshall Plan; McCloy, John; Military Draft; Military Government; Post World War II; Practice; Salary; Specialized Training; UB Preparation; World War II

Subjects: CAREER: MILITARY

Segment Synopsis: Resigned position in 1948, was expecting first child wanted him to be born in U.S. Went on speaking tour in WNY. Getting business. Between 1949 and 1957 hired eight people; Firm was Jasen, Mans, Johnson and Begar; one of the largest plaintiffs' law firms in Buffalo. All became judicial officers. Litigation; changes in law--environmental, labor law opens up. Most important rules have changes--discovery rule. Insurance lawyers in 30's and 40's had no right to (?) Gamesmanship in those days, (gives example); discovery opens up--changes occur gradually, truth seeking, fewer lawsuits. Nominated for State Supreme Court in 1958, served by appointment; Haggarty resigns/retires in 1957, Harriman democratic governor appoints Jasen in 1957, runs for the office in 1958, elected. Lang ran on Democrat and Bull Moose party ticket in 1912 and was elected; first democrat elected to State Supreme Court until 1958 when Jasen wins on Democratic ticket. 8th Judicial District had a greater population than 16 states. Speaking tour post war helped him politically. Anecdote of receiving excellent press in Stars and Stripes while in Heidelberg because press was centered there. Judge Robert Jackson from Jamestown, chief prosecutor at Nuremberg trials calls Jasen to meet. Surprised at how young Jasen is, compares notes, people they know in Buffalo. Jasen indicates desire to serve in Supreme Court someday and is mistaken by Jackson as a Republican. Jasen called young and naive by Jackson.

Keywords: Accomplishments; Anecdote; Appointments; Career / Military Service; Discovery Rule; Elections / Political History; Financial Support; Germany, Nuremberg; Jackson, Robert; Law Firms; Laws; Practice

Subjects: CAREER: MILITARY; PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Segment Synopsis: Do over? Times during Depression there were times he questioned choice based solely on economic factors; felt honored to be a lawyer. Parents complained about arrogant lawyers, made him promise to treat people with dignity. Law School effects on personal and family life, experienced pressures as a lawyer; becoming a judge gave more control over life. In 1957, had 16 trials in Supreme Court, that's a lot of trials for a Plaintiff lawyer. Legal training and dealing with people; happily married, four children, wife dies at 51 from leukemia; law helpful in life, wife proud to be married to lawyer and judge; daughters chose education and library science, sons chose law; grandchildren not sure about law. Advice? Younger grandchildren not ready to choose, just starting college.

Keywords: Advice; Career / Professional Experience; Children / Grandchildren; Family; Great Depression; Occupations; Plaintiff Law; Practice; Value of Education

Subjects: PERSONAL ISSUES

Segment Synopsis: Caliber of UB students, excellent; has been to many moot courts and visited at many distinguished Universities. Caliber of UB students comparable to any of them. Participated with moot court; responsive, retained speakers for School; received Jaeckle Award. Something to change in law school? more exposure to actual practice, clinical aspects added to curriculum; not available to him back then. Watershed developments? criminal field supplying council and paying for it; assignment of council back in his days. Significant achievements: 1. Heidelberg assignment 2. serving on the Court of Appeals 3. Supreme Court; 31 yrs of age had awesome power and responsibility sitting alone; gave him great confidence and maturity; Occupied Germany experience in dealing with many areas, came back a different man. Experience instilled great confidence.

Keywords: Bench; Caliber of Students; Career / Professional Experience; Continuing Role; Curriculum; Greatest Achievement; Intellectual Tradition; Laws; Legal Education; Student Culture; UB Law School general

Subjects: PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE; UB LAW MISCELLANEOUS