3 University of Oklahoma Law School alums honored

The University of Oklahoma College of Law honored three distinguished alumni at its annual Order of the Owl Hall of Fame ceremony.

The Order of the Owl recognizes OU Law graduates who demonstrate leadership and service through outstanding accomplishments in their legal careers.

The class of 2017 includes the Honorable David B. Lewis, the first African-American to serve on the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals; Judy Hamilton Morse, the first woman to act as president of a major Oklahoma law firm; and the Honorable Steven W. Taylor, retired Oklahoma Supreme Court justice and leader in the legal profession who served as presiding judge of the state trial in the Oklahoma City bombing case.

“Each of this year’s inductees represent the best of OU Law,” said OU College of Law Dean Joseph Harroz Jr. “We are honored to recognize their many accomplishments and are indebted to them for the legacy of service they model for generations of OU Law students.”

The inductees

Lewis was appointed to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals in 2005 by then-Gov. Brad Henry. He served as presiding judge of the court from 2013 to 2014.

Before becoming a judge, Lewis spent three years in private practice and four years as a Comanche County prosecutor. Later, he was a special judge from 1991 to 1999 and a district judge for Comanche, Stephens, Jefferson and Cotton counties from 1999 to 2005.

Morse became the first woman to serve as president of a major law firm in Oklahoma, holding that role for three years at her current firm, Crowe & Dunlevy. She currently is a director in the firm’s Oklahoma City office and is the immediate past chair of the Litigation and Trial Practice Groups. Morse is an experienced trial lawyer, having spent her career focused on litigation and trial practice, as well as bankruptcy and creditors’ rights.

Taylor joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1970 and served on active duty from 1974 to 1978. He was trained as an infantry platoon commander and later served as a prosecutor and chief defense counsel. In 1977, he became the youngest judge in the U.S. Armed Forces. He was promoted to the rank of major.

Following active duty service, Taylor practiced law in McAlester, and was later elected mayor, making him the youngest mayor in that city’s history. In 1984, then-Gov. George Nigh appointed him associate district judge for Pittsburg County, and in 1994 he was elected district judge of the 18th Judicial District. In 1997 and 2003, Taylor was elected presiding judge of the 10-county East-Central Judicial Administrative District. In 2004, Gov. Brad Henry appointed him to the Oklahoma Supreme Court, where he served as chief justice from 2011 to 2013. In his more than 20 years as a trial judge, Taylor presided over more than 500 jury trials, including the state trial of the Oklahoma City bombing case.

The Order of the Owl has previously inducted 20 OU Law alumni.