Allen Banks Burch

Allen Banks Burch (1894 – May 31, 1948) was a Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court from January 8, 1945 to May 31, 1948.[1]

He was elected to the supreme court to fill the seat vacated by the retirement of justice John Shaw Dawson.[2] He stood as a Republican for position 7 on the court,[3] and when elected was the youngest member of the court.[4] He was succeeded by Austin M. Cowan after his unexpected death.[1] This was a temporary appointment pending an election of Robert T. Price who completed the unexpired term of Burch.[5]

He wrote the minority opinion for the 1947 Reorganization Act that invalidated all sections of the 1945 Reorganization Act deemed to violate the state constitution.[6]

He was a member of the American Bar Association and the Kansas Bar Association.[7] He had also been the vice president and counsel to The Morris Plan bank of Kansas.[8]

He was born in Carthage, Missouri in 1894 to a doctor,[9] growing up in Fredonia, Kansas.[7] As a child he visited Europe with his father, and saw art and culture that inspired him to later take up oil paining.[9] He graduated from the University of Kansas in 1917,[7] took the bar exam in June 1917[10] and joined an old law firm in Wichita.[9] His career was interrupted by World War I in which he served.[9] He returned from the war to practice law in Wichita until he was elected to the supreme court.[7]

He was currently living in Wichita, Kansas when he died in Topeka, Kansas from a heart attack May 31, 1948.[7] He suffered the fatal attack whilst playing bridge with his wife and friends.[4] He left behind his wife May, a son Howard M. Burch and two daughters Joan Burch and Betty Dreher.[7]

References
  1. "8 Jun 1948, 1 - The Manhattan Mercury at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  2. "3 Jan 1945, 3 - The Weekly Kansas City Star at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  3. "Lawrence Daily Journal World Archives, Jul 29, 1944, p. 3". NewspaperArchive.com. 29 July 1944. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  4. "1 Jun 1948, Page 4 - The Iola Register at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  5. "29 Nov 1948, 1 - The Manhattan Mercury at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  6. "29 Jun 1947, 1 - The Manhattan Mercury at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  7. The Shield of Phi Kappa Psi (PDF). November 1948. p. 152. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  8. "26 Dec 1936, Page 10 - The Catholic Advance at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  9. Kansas Judicial Council Bulletin (Part 2) (PDF). July 1948. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  10. "The Topeka Daily Capital, 23 May 1917 "50 to Take Bar Exam"". The Topeka Daily Capital. 23 May 1917. p. 5. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
Political offices
Preceded by
John Shaw Dawson		 Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court
1945–1948		 Succeeded by
Austin M. Cowan


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