Colleagues of Thomas A. “Tac” Craven have been known to be careful as they walk around office hallway corners. If they do not, they might, literally, run into Craven as he comes flying around the corner heading the other direction.

“That was well known around the office,” said Forrest Plant Sr., a former partner and mentor. “That energy level has always struck me from when he first started as a lawyer to the present. He is a person with an extremely high energy level. He keeps a busy schedule and throws himself with great energy and vigor into everything he does.”

And Craven does a lot. He commits that boundless energy not only to his probate, trust, and estate planning practice but also to community service activities, especially civic education for youth. These commitments, along with his contributions as past president of the Barristers Club, past president of the Sacramento County Bar Association, and current President of the Sacramento Law Foundation, earned Craven the 2004 Distinguished Attorney Award.

Retired Superior Court Judge Michael Virga, Sr. describes Tac Craven as “an attorney of exceptional skill and integrity with the highest professional and ethical standards. He has a well-earned place at the top of the legal profession. In the field of probate law he is a legend not only in Sacramento but throughout the state. He is a respected leader of the Sacramento County Bar. His contributions to the legal profession are exceeded only by his contributions to the community, especially the young people who aspire to careers in the law.”

Having spent his childhood in small towns in Oregon and Washington, Craven received his undergraduate and law degrees from Stanford University. To meet college expenses, he worked as a hasher, picked fruit alongside migrant workers during the summer, clerked in a department store, and counseled undergraduates as a graduate resident assistant. Craven participated in the first Stanford-in-Washington student intern program and was assigned to the Senate Commerce Committee where he worked on the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Craven vividly remembers being at the Reflecting Pool hearing Martin Luther King, Jr.’s moving “I Have a Dream” speech. After law school, he served in the Army Signal Corps with one year in Korea during the Pueblo hijacking crisis.

He brought his unbridled enthusiasm to Sacramento in 1969 when he accepted an associate position with Diepenbrock, Wulff, Plant & Hannegan (“DWPH”). Although he had offers for employment in other locales, he chose Sacramento because it had colleges nearby; it still thought of itself as a small town where addressing others on a first-name basis was common; it was clearly growing rapidly and it would likely provide better opportunities for a young lawyer to advance. He was a partner at DWPH for 24 years before it dissolved.

Craven learned quickly how important it was to extend a reputation for integrity and honesty to his legal career. On his first trip to the courthouse, he was assigned the task of presenting a probate petition, prepared by A. I. Diepenbrock, his then senior partner. As the judge began to question neophyte Craven, he noticed the order was prepared by the senior Diepenbrock and quickly signed it without further inquiry. “A. I. Diepenbrock,” the judge said later, “knows more about probate than I will ever know and enjoys an impeccable reputation.”

“It was a pivotal indication of the value of establishing a reputation for quality legal work and integrity,” Craven says. “I have worked for 35 years to develop that kind of reputation for myself.” Craven is a State Bar certified specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law, a Fellow in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel [one of four in Sacramento] and a life member in the Sacramento Estate Planning Council. He is a frequent panelist for Continuing Education of the Bar programs.

“When he walks in the courtroom, everyone knows who he is in terms of his integrity, thoroughness and honesty,” said Tracy Potts, a fellow estate practitioner.

“The best thing about Tac is you always know he will do the right thing,” says Trudy Nearn, a former partner. “You never have to worry that he will try to take a short-cut or get in a conflict of interest situation. He is always concerned about treating the client right and making sure the client’s interests are protected. He is very conscientious. Tac is just a really nice guy.”

Craven says a rewarding and effective trust and estates practice requires a blend of skills: mastery of complex technical laws and procedures, sensitivity in dealing with family members in crisis, and maintenance of an efficient office team. He makes it clear that he could not have maintained his practice without his capable legal assistant of 25 years, Beth Rose. “She has been invaluable to me and my clients.”

Craven has been a lifelong advocate of civic education for youth by volunteering countless hours to organizations and programs that actively engage them in law-related activities. Arthur Scotland, Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, agrees that: “Tac is a superb choice as Attorney of the Year for many reasons. But in my view, the award is most fitting because of the positive influence he has had on so many high school students as the mainstay of the Schaber High School moot court program. I marvel at Tac’s energy, enthusiasm, and creativity in crafting issues and fact patterns that capture the students’ interest and challenge them to articulate the merits of both sides of the issues. He is a credit to our community and our profession.”

Craven emphasizes, “By engaging these students at an early age, we can teach them about the dynamics of the rule of law, the checks and balances in our constitutional government, and the critical importance of informed participation in American democracy. It is especially useful to have students argue both sides of a complex issue because they learn there are good arguments on both sides. This builds tolerance and respect for diverse opinions.”

Joseph Maloney, Executive Director of the Center for Youth Citizenship (“CYC”), points out that “Twenty years ago, Tac served as CYC’s first President of the Board of Directors, still sits on our Board, and continues to volunteer as chair of the Center’s flagship program, the Gordon D. Schaber Mock Trial and Moot Court High School Competition,” now in its twenty-sixth year. Craven is equally enthusiastic about CYC’s other regional and state youth and education programs such as Reaching Resolution, Law Works, Character Education for Youth, Conflict Resolution Training for Schools, and With Liberty and Justice for All.

Craven’s involvement in civic education extends to national and international programs as well. He is the President of the Board of Directors of the Center for Civic Education (“CCE”), a nonprofit group that designs and promotes national and international civic education programs. He has traveled abroad as an official representative for CCE to the Czech Republic, Germany, Bosnia, and Nigeria. He is a member of the California State Advisory Committee for the We The People - Project Citizen Program.

Throughout his life, Craven has demonstrated commitments to his core values, the law, and the community. He is a devoted husband of 30 years to Patricia H. Wong, a Superior Court Commissioner, and a doting father to their daughter, Kelly Wong Craven, a second year law student at Pepperdine University. Kelly says proudly, “Dad brings everything he is to everything he does.” Craven believes, “I am a lucky fellow with a fantastic team at home as well as at the office.”

The Sacramento County Bar Association is honored to bestow upon Thomas A. Craven the 2004 Distinguished Attorney Award.