The last two Fridays I have spent speaking at Continuing Legal Education Seminars sponsored by the Institute of Continuing Education. My topic: Ethics and Professionalism. In preparing for both presentations, I couldn’t help but think about a dear departed friend who was the embodiment of Ethics and Professionalism, Judge Ed Carriere. I recall as one of the highest honors of my year serving as President of the State Bar of Georgia the day I accompanied Chief Justice Carol Hunstein to Judge Carriere’s home and with his wife, Jane, present, Chief Justice Hunstein published the resolution below. It gave me goose bumps then and it does now in the remembering of it. I wish everyone could have known Judge Carriere. Certainly, everyone who did was changed for the better. I share with you the Joint Resolution honoring Judge Carriere.
Whereas: The Honorable Edward E. Carriere, Jr. has rendered more than four decades of service to the justice system and the legal profession in the State of Georgia; and
Whereas: Judge Carriere earned his law degree at Loyola University in California and was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 1971; and
Whereas: Judge Carriere served as Assistant District Attorney in the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit and as Associate Judge in the DeKalb County Recorder’s Court and since 1988, has served as a Municipal Judge for the City of Decatur; and
Whereas: In 1998, Judge Carriere was appointed by Governor Zell Miller as Judge of the DeKalb County State Court, was later elected and served in that capacity, including as Chief Judge, until his retirement in 2010, serving since then as a Senior Judge; and
Whereas: Judge Carriere also demonstrated his commitment to serving the legal profession as a devoted member of the Board of Governors, the policy-making body of the State Bar of Georgia, from 1992 through 2012, and as a member of the Executive Committee from 1997 through 2000; and
Whereas: Judge Carriere served on the Investigative Panel of the State Disciplinary Board from 1994 through 1997, serving as Chair in 1997; chaired the Disciplinary Rules and Procedures Committee for several years, shepherding the process of drafting and adopting rules based on the American Bar Association Rules of Professional Conduct; continues to serve on the Formal Advisory Board; and through his superior knowledge of the Rules of Professional Conduct has been a tremendous asset to the Office of General Counsel and the State Bar with his work in the disciplinary and ethics areas; and
Whereas: In addition to his service to the justice system and the legal profession, Judge Carriere has served his community in many ways, including through the establishment in 2007 of the Carriere Family Scholarship for Teachers through a generous gift from Judge Carriere and his wife, Jan, to the Decatur Education Foundation; and
Whereas: The justice system, the legal profession and the citizens of Decatur, DeKalb County and the great State of Georgia have benefited from Judge Carriere’s exemplary service, his devotion to the law and his passion for justice.
Now therefore be it resolved: That the Supreme Court of Georgia and the State Bar of Georgia do hereby express their profound appreciation to the Honorable Edward E. Carriere, Jr. for his lifetime of contributions, which will have a lasting, positive impact on the legal profession and the justice system.
Chief Justice Carol W. Hunstein Robin Frazer Clark, President
Supreme Court of Georgia State Bar of Georgia
Robin Frazer Clark pursues justice for those who have personal injury claims as a result of being injured in motor vehicle wrecks, trucking wrecks, defective products, defective maintenance of roads, premises safety, medical malpractice and other incidents caused by the negligence of others. Ms. Clark is the 50th President of the State Bar of Georgia and a Past President of Georgia Trial Lawyers Association and has practiced law in Georgia for 26 years. Mrs. Clark is listed as one of the Top 50 Women Trial Lawyers in Georgia and is a Georgia Super Lawyer. Robin Frazer Clark~Dedicated to the Constitution’s Promise of Justice for All.