Historic court appointment

Jet, Nov 10, 2003

HISTORIC COURT APPOINTMENT: New Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge Paul B. Higginbotham takes the oath from Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson at the state Capitol in Madison, WI. Higginbotham, who has been on the bench since 1994, became the first African-American to serve on one of Wisconsin's appellate courts.

Judge Higginbotham, who received his law degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and practiced in Milwaukee, said he decided on a law career because his cousin, the late U.S. Circuit Judge Leon Higginbotham, a noted civil rights champion, inspired him. Judge Paul Higginbotham was appointed by Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle to replace Justice Pat Roggensack, who was elected to that state's supreme court earlier this year.