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Amalya Lyle Kearse
Judge's Robe Cloaks an Individual of Many Talents
by Lee Katterman
Office of the Vice President for Research
Since 1979, Amalya Lyle Kearse has served as a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, New York City. During her term on the federal appeals bench, and as a lawyer before that, Judge Kearse has earned a reputation as a gifted legal scholar, first-rate legal writer, and shrewd analyst.
But those who first knew her while she studied at the University of Michigan Law School from 1959-1962 remember someone whose intellect and talents go well beyond the law. While a student at the UM, Kearse was a research assistant to several faculty, including John Reed, professor emeritus of law. Reed was impressed by Kearse's creativity and breadth of interest, and describes her as a Renaissance person with many talents.
"Her research for me was of uniformly high quality and met or exceeded all my expectations," Reed says. "She did excellent academic work, yet maintained a very full life including many kinds of activities."
Reed especially recalls her creativity and initiative. On one occasion, he was preparing some songs for entertainment at an Association of American Law Schools meeting that involved parodies based on music from Broadway musicals of the day. "I was stuck for a song to make a particular point. She [Kearse] heard me talking about this and, without prior announcement, simply placed on my desk one morning a set of words to be sung to the music from "The Music Man" that filled the bill perfectly."
Another time, Reed was discussing with a colleague ideas for new ways to test his students. This colleague jokingly suggested giving them something in the form of a crossword puzzle. "Two or three days later, Amalya place on my desk an excellent and difficult 'double-crostic' puzzle based on a quotation from one of Judson Falknor's evidence articles," says Reed. "It was so much fun that I had it reproduced and given to my students (though not as an examination question).
Kearse was a good athlete, too. Reed says he would often invite her join tennis games with himself and other faculty. "She was always the best player on the court," says Reed. While a senior in 1959 at Wellesley College, she became the campus "hoop rolling champion."
(Hoop rolling is a long Wellesley College tradition that continues today. In late May, the seniors line up on a street near campus and race as they roll and guide a metal hoop with a stick. Originally, the hoop rolling champion was proclaimed the first of the class to marry -- later that was updated to deem the winner would be the first to become a CEO; and today, it's said that the hoop rolling champion will be the first in her class to achieve success, however she defines it...and quite appropriate in case of Amayla Kearse.)
Kearse was born June 11, 1937 in Vauxhall, New Jersey, Her father, Robert Freeman Kearse, the Vauxhall postmaster, encouraged his daughter to consider the legal profession. Kearse says her father had always wanted to be a lawyer, but was prevented from doing so by the hardships imposed by the Great Depression. Her mother, Myra Lyle Smith Kearse, was a physician and later became an antipoverty official, so the notion of a career of public service was also modeled for Kearse.
At Wellesley, Kearse majored in philosophy. Her classes included one international law. A moot court was a part of the course, something she enjoyed so much that it she decided to become a litigator.
So after she graduated from Wellesley in 1959, attended Michigan and graduated cum laude and near the top of her class in 1962. While at Michigan, she was elected to the Order of the Coif, an honor society in law and was Editor of the Law Review. Her legal expertise and performance on the Law Review Editorial Board earned Kearse the Jason L. Honigman Prize.
After graduation, Kearse joined the Wall Street law firm of Hughes, Hubbard, and Reed in New York City. She was one of very few African Americans and even fewer African American women to work on Wall Street. To succeed in those times, she had to be better than excellent, and she was. Kearse specialized in business and antitrust litigation. In 1969, she became a partner, an unprecedented accomplishment for someone so young.
At the age of 41, Kearse was appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals by President Jimmy Carter. She was only the second African American and first woman to serve in the Second Circuit; only Thurgood Marshall, who had become a member of the Supreme Court by 1979, had preceded her.
Kearse has been a thoughtful and productive appellate judge. She has been involved in the opinion that barred police from observing a suspect through a telescope without a warrant; the opinion permitting television networks to broadcast the Abscam tapes, the upholding of the New York State ban on school prayers, as well as many other major rulings and decisions.
Kearse's outstanding reputation as a lawyer and judge has led several presidents of both parties to put her name on the short list of candidates for the Supreme Court. Her name has been considered by the Reagan, Bush and Clinton administrations. She also almost was nominated for Attorney General by President Clinton, who ended up nominating Janet Reno instead.
To add to a long and distinguished legal career, Kearse is a world-class bridge player. She has been a five-time national champion and has written, translated and edited many books on bridge.
A wonderfully talented individual with great breadth, Judge Kearse is truly a credit to the University of Michigan.
April, 1999