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108 CONNECTICUT BAR JOURNAL [Vol. 91.1 2018] booK review 109 take up to 16 weeks of leave in a 24-month period because Benched: Abortion, Terrorists, Drones, Crooks, of an emergency arising out of an employee’s spouse, son, Supreme Court, Kennedy, Nixon, Demi Moore, and daughter, or parent being on active duty or being notified of Other Tales from the Life of a Federal Judge an impending call or order to activity duty in the armed – Jon O. Newman, William S. Hein & Co., Inc., Getzville, forces. Public Act 16-195. N.y, 2017. 302 pages. 6. IRAs for Employees On February 25, 1955, second-year yale law student Jon Public Act 16-3, which will not be effective until January O. Newman wrote the firm of Ritter and Satter about an 1, 2018, creates the Connecticut Retirement Security opening for a summer job. He had obtained information Authority, w hich may establish a program requiring private about this opportunity from John Subak, who was a staff sector employers to establish ROTH IRAs (after tax IRAs) member of the yale Law Journal and had the year before for their employees. An employee who does not opt out from held summer employment with Ritter and Satter. Robert the program will be required to contribute 3% of wages to a Satter wrote back to Newman on March 3, 1955, that “we. Roth IRA, no later than 60 days after the employer provides .would be desireous [sic] of meeting you.”1 He continued: the employee with information about the program. An “[W]e have somebody from Harvard who also has employer covered by the Act is one that has at least five approached us so I would suggest that you come up as soon employees who were paid at least $5,000 in wages in the as you can. The best time I’d say would be on a Saturday preceding calendar. An employee covered by the law when both of us are here and the telephone is not jangling.”2 includes those who have worked for a qualified employer for Satter later became a well-respected legislator and then a at least 120 days and are at least 19 years old. An employ- judge of the Connecticut Superior Court. er is exempt if it maintains a retirement plan recognized The Harvard applicant was not chosen, and Newman under the Internal Revenue Code, such as 401(k), 403(b), or secured a summer job. After yale graduation and federal 401(a) pension plans. clerkships, Newman returned as a partner, with the firm 7. Connecticut Minimum Wage entitled “Ritter, Satter, and Newman.” From this beginning, Effective January 1, 2017, the minimum wage in Jon O. Newman rose to become a stellar figure in Connecticut was increased to $10.10 per hour.325 Connecticut legal history, holding the positions of Connecticut U.S. Attorney, U.S. District Judge, and, for VII. CONCLUSION most of his career, a judge of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. He was a finalist to become a U. S. Supreme Court 2016 saw a significant increase in the number of cases Justice, but President Clinton selected Ruth Bader filed at the CHRO, in the Superior Court, and in the District Ginsburg instead. One possible reason given by some knowl- Court. The District Court judges issued more decisions in edgeable figures for Judge Newman’s failure to be selected discrimination cases than in previous years. These facts and was an Op-Ed that he wrote for the new york times during the increase in FLSA cases filed, we can expect an increase the Clarence Thomas debate a few years before, urging in rulings of interest in 2017 and beyond. With the change Congress to reject Justice Thomas’ nomination in favor of in the federal administration, we can also expect changes in NLRB rulings and in court rulings on appeals from NLRB 1 Letter from Jon O. Newman to Robert Satter (Feb. 25, 1955) and reply decisions in 2017. from Robert Satter to Jon O. Newman (Mar. 3, 1955)(on file with the State Library Record Group 069-160, Satter (Robert) Collection, 1926-1993, bulk 1952-1980). 325 CONN. GEN. STAT. §31-58(i). 2 id. 190014_CBJ Vol91No1.indd 109 2/23/18 9:41 AM 110 CONNECTICUT BAR JOURNAL [Vol. 91.1 2018] booK review 111 Newman’s fellow judge on the Second Circuit, Amalya Judge Newman names his most significant District Kearse.3 During President Clinton’s selection process, the Court decisions as two from 1972, finding first an 1860 wall street Journal published an editorial critical of Judge anti-abortion statute unconstitutional, and then also find- Newman’s new york times Op-Ed. ing unconstitutional a 1972 anti-abortion statute passed in 4 Judge Newman has now written a thoughtful memoir of response to his first ruling. The Judge’s rulings were based his life. Much of the book details his personal biography, on the failure of the State to justify protecting the rights of including his lawyer-father’s preparation of a genealogy of the fetus over a woman’s right to end her pregnancy, a Greek mythological figures that the judge completed and rationale that was adopted later by the Supreme Court in 5 published at the University of North Carolina Press. He roe v. wade. describes his education at the Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Judge Newman’s Second Circuit decisions are numerous. Connecticut, Princeton, and yale Law School. One lesson He wrote several decisions on the First Amendment, includ- he takes credit for learning, which also serves members of ing a concurring opinion in thomas v. board of education,6 the legal profession well, was the ability to write not only which involved the right of high school students to distrib- accurately, but speedily. ute a publication that contained vulgar language. In his con- currence, he agreed to further hearings be fore the school He married Martha Silberman at age twenty-one, just as board, stating cleverly that the students had the right to he entered yale Law School. They were married for fifty- wear armbands at school in protest of the Vietnam War,7 one years, and had three children and a number of grand- but not to wear Cohen’s jacket.8 children. I served on a board with Martha, who was one of He has ruled multiple times on employment discrimina- the friendliest and most competent persons whom I have tion issues under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. ever met. She died in 2005. In 2007, Judge Newman mar- One such case was Guardians association v. civil service ried Ann Leventhal, a writer, and the widow of a distin- commission,9 on the validity of a test and passing rates for guished Connecticut attorney, David Leventhal. those applyi ng for employment as police officers. He con- The book’s remaining chapter s describe the Judge’s cluded that the test had the illegal effect of excluding District and Appellate court experiences. The judge’s initial African-American applicants. He has also ruled in cases confirmation process in the District Court makes for fasci- involving discrimination against women in employment. nating reading. He ran into difficulties when the Nixon Two cases where he concluded that, in contrast to the major- administration, after giving assurance that his name had ity opinions, the women had made out prima facie cases been forwarded to the Senate Judiciary Committee, worked were Fisher v. vassar college10 and brown v. coach behind the scenes to defeat his nomination. He was helped stores.11 In both cases Judge Newman issued dissenting throughout by Senator Abraham Ribicoff, whom Judge Newman served either as an informal aide or as a formal 4 Abele v. Markle I, 342 F. Supp. 800 (D. Conn. 1972) vacated, 410 U.S. 951 administrative assistant from the late 1950s to 1964, both (1973); Abele v. Markle II, 351 F. Supp. 224 (D. Conn. 1972), vacated, 410 U.S. 951 (1973). in Connecticut and in Washington. 5 410 U.S. 113 (1973). 6 607 F.2d 1043, 1053-1058 (2d Cir. 1979), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 1081 (1980). 7 id. at 1054 (citing Tinker v. Des Moines Ind. School Board, 393 U.S. 503 3 JON O. NEWMAN, BENCHED: ABORTION, TERRORISTS, DRONES, CROOKS, (1969)). SUPREME COURT, KENNEDy, NIXON, DEMI MOORE, AND OTHER TALES FROM THE LIFE 8 id. at 1055 (citing Cohen v. California, 403 U.S. 15 (1971), a case allowing OF A FEDERAL JUDGE 181-82 (William S. Hein & Co., Inc. 2017). Judge Newman dis- adults to wear a jacket with a vulgar phrase on it into court). cusses the controversy over the Op-Ed in his book. He also states that he likely 9 630 F.2d 79 (2d Cir. 1980), cert. denied, 452 U.S. 940 (1981). would have declined an appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court at that stage in 10 114 F.3d 1332, 1361-86 (2d Cir. 1997), cert. denied, 522 U.S. 1075 (1998). his career. 11 163 F.3d 706, 713-17 (2d Cir. 1998). 190014_CBJ Vol91No1.indd 110 2/23/18 9:41 AM 110 CONNECTICUT BAR JOURNAL [Vol. 91.1 2018] booK review 111 Newman’s fellow judge on the Second Circuit, Amalya Judge Newman names his most significant District Kearse.3 During President Clinton’s selection process, the Court decisions as two from 1972, finding first an 1860 wall street Journal published an editorial critical of Judge anti-abortion statute unconstitutional, and then also find- Newman’s new york times Op-Ed.

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