Heaney, Gerald W. (Gerald William), 1918-2010

Federal judge.

From the description of Jacob Trieber research project papers, 1872-1986. (Arkansas History Commission). WorldCat record id: 232357557

Gerald William Heaney was born in Goodhue, Minnesota, on January 29, 1918, to William J. and Johanna (Ryan) Heaney. He attended St. Thomas College (1935-1937). He received his BSL degree in 1938, and his LL.B degree in 1941, both from the University of Minnesota. He was admitted to the Minnesota bar in 1941, and worked as a lawyer in the Securities Division of the Minnesota Commerce Department (1941-1942). He served in the United States Army (1942-1946) and was a member of the Lewis, Hammer, Heaney, Weyl & Halverson law firm (Duluth, Minnesota), 1946-1966). Heaney was named a judge on the United States Court of Appeals (8th Circuit) in December 1966. He assumed semi-retired Senior Judge status in January 1989. A longtime Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party activist, Heaney held various appointed posts in the party in the 1950s and 1960s. He was also a Minnesota member of the Democratic National Committee (1955) and a member of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents (1964-1965). Heaney married Eleanor R. Schmitt on December 1, 1945. The Heaneys have two children. Heaney died June 22, 2010.

The United States Courts of Appeals are intermediate courts created by an act of March 3, 1891, to relieve the Supreme Court of considering appeals in cases originally decided by federal courts. They are empowered to review final and certain interlocutory decisions of district courts, except where the law provides for direct review by the Supreme Court. They also review orders of federal administrative bodies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Labor Relations Board. The U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit, is based in St. Louis, Missouri, and hears appeals of cases heard by lower Federal courts in Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

From the guide to the Gerald W. Heaney papers., 1910-2006 (bulk 1946-2006)., (Minnesota Historical Society)