FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 7, 2000 CONTACT: Chris Friesleben, (515) 271-2833 IOWA CHIEF JUSTICE McGIVERIN TO SPEAK AT DRAKE LAW SCHOOL’S SUPREME COURT BANQUET Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Arthur A. McGiverin will reflect on four decades of change in Iowa’s court system in a keynote address at Drake Law School’s Annual Supreme Court Celebration banquet Saturday, March 11. The speech will follow a 6 p.m. reception and 7 p.m. dinner at the downtown Marriott Hotel. McGiverin will retire next fall after serving 40 years in a judicial capacity, 22 of those as a state Supreme Court justice. During that time profound and important changes have changed the landscape of Iowa’s judicial system, according to McGiverin. The most important change was an amendment to the state’s constitution in the early 1960s that altered the way judges are chosen. No longer would popularity, political affiliations and expensive campaigns determine who would hold judgeships. Instead, the state established a merit system based on nomination commissions, appointments and non-partisan retention elections. According to McGiverin, this single change assured Iowans that judges "owe their allegiance to the law, not to campaign contributions." Other important changes that McGiverin cites include the rapid and steady advancement of technology, the establishment of the Iowa Appeals Court, and the restructuring plan approved last year that will increase the size of the Appeals Court and reduce the size of state’s Supreme Court. According to McGiverin, this change is imperative so the "the full and collective resources of the [state’s highest] court are brought to bear on the development of the case law." McGiverin was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1978 and has been chief justice since 1987. After his graduation from the University of Iowa Law School in 1956, he practiced law in Ottumuwa and served as a municipal judge for several years. Prior to his appointment to the state’s highest court, he was a district court judge, serving as assistant chief judge and later as chief judge of his district. Drake Law School’s Supreme Court Celebration honors the Iowa Supreme Court through a series of appellate advocacy competitions that culminates in hypothetical case arguments by Drake law students before the state’s highest court. The banquet that caps the festivities brings together students, faculty, staff, alumni, friends and members of the community to announce various awards and achievements and to recognize those who have made significant contributions to the Law School. For more information, contact Nancy Dunham, (515) 271-2057.