The Ninth Circuit and the American Inns of Court honored Ann Taylor Schwing on July 19 during the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference in Monterey.

Tenth Circuit Judge Deanell Reece Tacha, left, presented the American Inns of Court Professionalism Award to Ann Taylor Schwing.

Schwing received the 2004 American Inns of Court Circuit Professionalism Award, which recognizes "a senior practicing lawyer or judge whose life and practice display sterling character and unquestioned integrity, coupled with ongoing dedication to the highest standards of the legal profession and the rule of law."

Schwing is associated with the Sacramento law firm of McDonough Holland and Allen, working in the litigation section on appeals, motions and research. Her time is divided among work for the firm, writing legal treatises, and involvement in the Anthony M. Kennedy Inn of Court. She has been the inn's Master of the Bench since 1988 and has served on its executive committee since 1989.

Schwing serves on the Ninth Circuit Advisory Board, an advisory group to the Judicial Council of the Ninth Circuit, governing body for federal courts in nine western states and two Pacific Island jurisdictions. She serves on the Eastern District of California's Judicial Advisory Committee and Civil Justice Reform Act Advisory Group, and is a member of the district's Early Neutral Evaluation Panel. She also is a member of the American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the State Bar of California and the Sacramento County Bar Association, and a trustee of the Sacramento Law Foundation.

Tenth Circuit Chief Judge Deanell Reece Tacha, president of the American Inns of Court, presented the award to Schwing. Below are excerpts from Judge Tacha's remarks.

The American Inns of Court Professionalism Award is given in the year of a Judicial Conference in each circuit. The award is to recognize and honor a senior practicing lawyer or judge whose life and practice display sterling character and unquestioned integrity. The list of lawyers and judges who have received these awards in the federal circuits reads like a Who's Who in the legal profession. Each recipient displays ongoing dedication to the highest standards of the legal profession and the rule of law. After nominations from throughout the circuit, a national awards committee makes the selections. Having served as chair of that selection committee for several years, I can tell you that it is both humbling and awe-inspiring to read the biographical information on these remarkable lawyers and judges. They each make us proud to be a part of this profession. They each model for us the highest standards to which all of us aspire in this profession. Their commitment to integrity and the vitality of the legal profession is evident in their work, their personal lives, and their service to the profession in their communities.

This year's honoree in the Ninth Circuit is truly an example of the highest standards recognized by the Professionalism Award. This year's recipient of the Ninth Circuit Professionalism Award is Ann Taylor Schwing. Ann's career in the law is, quite simply, an inventory of the right thing to do as a lawyer. Ms. Schwing is a member of the Anthony M. Kennedy Inn of Court in Sacramento, California. She was, however, nominated for this award by several other Inns including the Ralph M. Brown Inn of Court in Modesto and the Milton L. Schwartz Inn in Davis.

From the letters of nomination, I suspect that it is a repetitive enterprise for me to tell you about Ann Taylor Schwing's remarkable life as a lawyer. After graduating from the University of California at Berkeley, cum laude in 1968, she went to Boson University where she also graduated cum laude and was a member of the Boston University Law Review editorial board. She began her professional career as a law clerk for United States District Judge Thomas McBride from 1977 to 1980. She then went into the private practice of law where she continues to practice law of counsel with McDonough, Holland & Allen. In supporting the nomination of Ann Taylor Schwing, her colleague Joe Ramsey says, and I quote, "She has an unparalleled reputation for integrity, reliability, trustworthiness, and the highest possible ethical standards." He says that she will always do the right thing because she always has from the beginning of her practice.

Ann Taylor Schwing's life in the law has been far, far broader than the ongoing practice responsibilities. According to several federal judges, she has maintained very important ties with the federal court system by serving on the Ninth Circuit Advisory Board, a member and reporter of the Judicial Advisory Committee for the Eastern District of California, a member of the Civil Justice Reform Act Advisory Group, a member of the Early Neutral Evaluation Panel for the Eastern District of California, and a lawyer delegate to the Ninth Circuit Conference. She chaired the local Rules Committee in the Eastern District and is currently helping the court transition to the new electronic filing system by leading a rules revision effort.

Ann Taylor Schwing is also a remarkable author of important contributions to legal literature. She is the author of California Affirmative Defense Second Edition and The National Treatise of Meeting Laws Second Edition. She is co-author of The Regulation of Money Managers, and recently co-authored Securitization. I suspect we have maybe all cited her at some point because she is also a contributing editor to Black's Law Dictionary. In addition to these books, she has authored literally hundreds of articles on various legal topics.

Ann Schwing has been very important to the Anthony M. Kennedy American Inn of Court. She is a Master of the Bench and one of the founding members of the Kennedy Inn. It is said by many that she knows what it takes to be a successful Inn. She has personally drafted, edited, and participated in team programs which have consistently ranked among the top ten programs each year in the American Inns of Court. Ms. Schwing has a full understanding of the purposes of the Inn of Court movement and brings to her Inn and others that she assists an important perspective on what it takes to be successful. Indeed, Ann also helped establish the Ralph M. Brown Inn of Court in Modesto, California, which has enjoyed almost instant success. Ann is the kind of leader that characterizes the strong Inns around this country.

Finally, as if her professional achievements were not enough, she is an extremely important member of her community. She has played a key role in the activities of the Land Trust of Napa County, which is a charitable corporation operating to preserve and conserve open lands. Because of her strong commitment to the environment and to Napa Valley, she served as president of that organization for three years. The success of her leadership is demonstrated by the fact that over 14,000 acres were set aside for conservation purposes during her presidency.

Perhaps most important, Ann Taylor Schwing considers it part of her professional and personal responsibility to serve as a mentor an example for all in the Inn movement to follow. The Kennedy Inn accepted one of the first Pegasus Scholars, a British barrister from Gray's Inn, who spent a term with that Inn in Sacramento. Ann arranged for visits with several firms, including her own, and hosted Mr. Bunmi in her home. That example is cited as one of the many kindnesses that Ann has extended to lawyers with whom she associates. As Professor Jed Scully says, "recognition of Ann Taylor Schwing for the Professionalism Award shows to each of us what one highly motivated and principled lawyer can do to advance the Rule of Law."

As the national President of the American Inns of Court, it is a great privilege to recognize Ann Taylor Schwing and present her with the Ninth Circuit Professionalism Award. Congratulations.

The Sacramento Lawyer would like to thank Joanna Mendoza for arranging for this article.