Elwood Thomas - A "Gentle Legal Giant"[1]

Elwood L. Thomas (1930-1995) left humble beginnings in Iowa to become an esteemed and beloved law professor, widely respected attorney and distinguished jurist in Missouri, over four decades earning a reputation as one of the greatest legal minds in the state. His life and dedication to the legal profession continue to serve as an inspiration to lawyers, judges, and law professors alike.

For an Inn of Court devoted to professionalism, ethics, and mentoring, it was eminently fitting to choose Thomas as the Inn's namesake at its founding in 2007. 

A fellow Missouri jurist, once Thomas' student, said in reflecting on his friend's legacy: "In an age when we could find ourselves wondering what has happened to the bar's tradition of professionalism, we need look no further for a model than Elwood Thomas. … He respected and admired lawyers in general and the profession of law. He was scrupulously honest in his dealing, loyal to his colleagues and dignified in adversity. He did his utmost to pass on these enduring qualities to a generation of Missouri lawyers, who will miss him greatly."[2]

As one of his colleagues on the Court said in his eulogy of Thomas, "For all of us, Elwood was a teacher. A gentle teacher. Elwood knew that teaching is far more important than passing information to another person. It is giving the soul; it is exposing the heart; it is eyes lit with experience and words colored with the excitement of seeing others take what is given for a useful purpose deep within themselves."[3]

Career as lawyer, professor

Born in July 1930 in Council Bluffs, Iowa, as the son of a minister, Thomas served in the United States Air Force during the Korean War before returning home to Iowa.[4] He earned his bachelor of arts degree in 1954 from Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, and his juris doctor in 1957 from Drake University Law School in Des Moines,[5] where he served as editor of the law review and was elected to the Order of the Coif. He spent the next eight years in the private practice of law in Sioux City and Webster City, Iowa, leaving in 1965 to join the faculty of the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law.

During the next 13 years, Thomas established himself as the "strongest and most loved teacher in the modern history of the law school,"[6] among not only the students but his colleagues as well. One of his colleagues recalled: "It is not an exaggeration to say that he became a legendary teacher. … His students liked and respected him because of the type of person he was. Elwood made an important contribution by serving as a model of how to conduct oneself as a lawyer and how to live a life. … He taught with energy and enthusiasm. … He combined mastery of the subject with realism and common sense."[7] 

As another colleague remembered: "What was so impressive about Elwood in the classroom was that his pedagogical brilliance betrayed not a hint of the arrogance that infects the performance of too many outstanding teachers. Even though Elwood demanded excellence and was a rigorous grader, students were uniquely attracted to him because their intuition told them correctly that he was on their side and wanted them to succeed."[8]

Though it was thought "much of his heart" remained at the law school,[9] Thomas returned to the practice of law in 1978 to become a partner with the Kansas City firm Shook, Hardy & Bacon.[10] Regarded as a leading authority on Missouri civil trial law, Thomas' legal work at the firm included representing plaintiffs in a case involving the July 1981 collapse of two skywalks at a Kansas City hotel, which killed 114 people and injured more than 200 others.[11]

Throughout his legal career, Thomas was known not only for his keen intellect but also his gentle way with others. His colleagues at both the law school and the law firm regularly sought his counsel. "He was patient, open and fair with an uncanny knack for lessening divisiveness and discord. … He held his views and argued them persuasively but without antagonizing others."[12]

Thomas served on the Supreme Court of Missouri's committee on civil jury instructions for 16 years, the last 10 as chair. Through this work, "Elwood Thomas left an imprint on the development of law in our state. An attorney's greatest skills are to take the most complicated issues of law, distill them to their essence, and translate them from legalese into words that every person on a jury can understand and apply to do justice. It was at this task that an expert in the law and a humanist like Elwood excelled."[13]

Thomas also twice chaired a task force for The Missouri Bar to update Missouri Evidence Restated and served a dozen years on the faculty of the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada.[14]

Judicial service

When Thomas was selected as the 106th judge of the Supreme Court of Missouri,[15] then-Judge Edward D. Robertson Jr. said, "This is an appointment the lawyers of this state will applaud unanimously. His scholarship and integrity are well known to so many people. He is going to be universally acclaimed."[16] Shook, Hardy & Bacon's then-managing partner Pat McLarney added, "He got this appointment because he is recognized by almost every lawyer in the state as being the most knowledgeable in Missouri law."[17] Upon his appointment, Thomas said he wanted to work for "a system of justice in which the people will have confidence and pride."[18]  Thomas' remarks upon taking his oath of office were reproduced by the Missouri Law Review at 61. Mo. L. Rev. 7 (Winter 1996).

On the bench, Thomas was reunited with two of his former students: then-Chief Justice John Holstein and then-Judge Ann Covington.[19] When Thomas succumbed to Parkinson's disease fewer than four years later, Holstein said, "Judge Thomas was a leader in the judiciary and the legal profession of Missouri. He made a tremendous contribution to the work of the Supreme Court and we will greatly miss his wit and warm personality. He was a dear and beloved colleague to every judge on the Court."[20]

Despite his short service on the Court, Thomas left behind an indelible body of work. "A review of his opinions and discussions with his colleagues on the bench again indicate Elwood's powerful intellect and gentle leadership. … His opinions demonstrated a lifetime of knowledge and wisdom gained from his love affair with the law." [21] He "had an affection for the hard issues and wrote pellucid opinions on tax, evidence, and jury instruction matters."[22]

Judge Thomas' discussion of "but-for" and proximate causation in Callahan v. Cardinal Glennon Hospital, 863 S.W.2d 852 (Mo. banc 1993) is one example of his exceptional ability to bring clarity to difficult and sometimes confusing areas of the law.

Reflecting on Thomas' judicial service, one of his former law school colleagues said, "What set Elwood apart … was his uncanny ability to translate extremely difficult and often arcane subject matter … into language that law students and lawyers alike could readily comprehend. … His articles and other scholarship not only bristled with insight and clarity, they were immensely valuable to both the theoretically inclined academy and the practicing bar alike."[23]

Our Inn continues to honor Thomas because he was "an outstanding and unique judicial talent" who "placed an irrevocable mark on Missouri jurisprudence and the UMC Law School," and "a warm, caring, compassionate and courageous friend" who made lives of those he touched "so much better for having known him."[24]