| ADReport |
Alternative
Dispute Resolution Section Newsletter |
| Volume Two, Number
Two |
Honorable
Melanie A. Vaughn, Chair
Mary Louise Preis, Editor
Jonathan S. Rosenthal, Co-Editor |
A Tribute to the Honorable Robert
M. Bell, Chief Judge, Maryland Court of Appeals
by Rachel Wohl and Lou Gieszl
Proclaiming a need to transform our "culture
of conflict" into a new "culture of conflict resolution," Chief
Judge Bell has won national acclaim in the ADR community for having created the
Maryland ADR Commission and the Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office
(MACRO), its successor. ADR Section members know that Chief Judge Bell’s
leadership on ADR issues has been extraordinary, so we wanted to take this
opportunity to provide a snapshot of his career outside of the ADR world.
Judge Bell grew up in East Baltimore and was
president of his senior class at Dunbar High School during the early civil
rights years. As a student and community leader, the young Robert Bell organized
sit-ins and marches protesting racial segregation. He was the lead defendant in
an important civil rights case that went all the way to the Supreme Court.
Former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, then a practicing Baltimore
attorney, lead Judge Bell’s defense team. Only after the U.S. Supreme Court
remanded the case to the Maryland Court of Appeals was it decided in Judge Bell’s
favor, reversing his trespass conviction and helping to end Maryland’s history
of racial segregation.
Judge Bell stayed in Maryland after finishing
high school, completing his undergraduate studies in history and political
science at Morgan State University and graduating in 1966. During that time he
met Senator Paul Sarbanes who persuaded him to apply to Harvard Law School.
Convinced and motivated, he did attend Harvard, graduated in 1969, returned to
Maryland, and was admitted to the Maryland Bar that same year. Judge Bell’s
civil disobedience and advocacy continued through college and law school. After
a series of sit-ins and student rallies, the young Judge Bell found himself on a
recruitment team that brought in Derrick Bell as Harvard’s first
African-American professor.
After practicing law for six years at Piper and
Marbury and gaining increased prominence in the Baltimore community, Judge Bell
was appointed to the District Court bench in 1975 at only 32 years of age. He
was elevated to the Circuit Court in 1980, and then to the Court of Special
Appeals in 1984. Judge Bell was appointed to the Court of Appeals in 1991 and
named Chief Judge in 1996. Judge Bell made history as the first African-American
to lead Maryland’s highest court and is the only Chief Judge who has served at
every level of the court system.
Judge Bell is one of only three African-American
state chief justices nationally, and is among the most forward thinking. He was
one of the first to recognize the court’s role as a problem solver, stressing
its responsibility to help prevent disputes from escalating. That thinking lead
to the creation of the Maryland ADR Commission as well as the creation of family
divisions, expanded family court services, court-based mediation programs, a pro
bono commission and other initiatives designed to increase public trust and
confidence in the Judiciary. Following his lead, the National Conference of
Chief Justices, of which he is a member, passed a resolution that all courts
should adopt a problem-solving orientation.
Despite his many achievements, Judge Bell is a
modest man. He credits many now famous role models who helped shape each step in
his career. He has a very strong sense of obligation to the community and a
life-long dedication to public service. Judge Bell also has a great sense of
humor, dresses impeccably, has a huge appetite but never gains weight, and knows
more yo-yo tricks than any other judge on the bench today.
Next time you see Judge Bell, just say
"thanks."
