Marvin R. Baxter
| Marvin Baxter | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California | |
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In office January 1991 – January 5, 2015 |
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| Appointed by | George Deukmejian |
| Preceded by | David Eagleson |
| Succeeded by | Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar |
| Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal, Fifth District | |
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In office December 1988 – January 1991 |
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| Nominated by | George Deukmejian |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 9, 1940 Fowler, California, U.S. |
| Alma mater |
California State University, Fresno, UC Hastings College of the Law |
Marvin Ray Baxter (born January 9, 1940) is a former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California who served from January 1991 to January 5, 2015.
Baxter was born in Fowler, California, and was raised on his family's farm. He is of Armenian descent; all four of his grandparents were born in Armenia and later moved to the United States. His paternal grandfather changed the family surname from Bagdasarian to Baxter because of strong anti-Armenian prejudice in the Fresno area during the 1930s.
Baxter graduated from Fowler High School and went on to attend California State University, Fresno, where he earned his undergraduate degree in economics. Upon graduation, he became a Coro Foundation Fellow in Public Affairs (1962–63), then entered UC Hastings College of the Law, from which he earned his law degree in 1966.
In 1967, Baxter began his legal career as a Fresno County deputy district attorney. Subsequently, he entered private practice in civil law in 1969. It was during this time he was an associate and then a partner in the Fresno law firm of Andrews, Andrews, Thaxter, Jones and Baxter where he practiced civil law.
In 1983, he moved back into public service as Appointments Secretary to Governor George Deukmejian, advising him on judicial and executive appointments.
In December 1988, Governor Deukmejian appointed Baxter as an Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal for the Fifth District. In January 1991, he was appointed Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California. He was retained by the electorate in November 2002, with 71.5% of the vote.
Baxter retired from the court on January 4, 2015.
Baxter preferred not to describe his own judicial philosophy, but a 1993 article in the Los Angeles Times described him as having an "emerging reputation among court observers as cautious, conservative and competent". The article also described a split between observers who considered him a solid part of the Court's conservative majority (led by Malcolm M. Lucas), and others who considered him harder to pin down. In 2008, he was part of the dissenting minority in In re Marriage Cases, a 4-3 decision legalizing same-sex marriage in California.
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