Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Use Restrictions

Because the library is not open to the general public, researchers should contact the library to arrange access to the collection.

Preferred Citation

Oral History Interview of John T. Tucker, III, retired chief staff attorney, Court of Appeals of Virginia, June 25, 2018, Accession number 00043097, Supreme Court of Virginia Archives, Virginia State Law Library, Richmond, Va.

Acquisition Information

The interview was recorded for the Supreme Court of Virginia Archives in June 2018 and accessioned October 10, 2018.

Biographical/Historical Information

The Supreme Court of Virginia Historical Commission was established in 2006 to preserve and promote the history of the court. Oral history interviews of retired Supreme Court of Virginia justices, Court of Appeals of Virginia judges, other individuals associated with the Virginia courts, and civil rights attorneys were begun in 2007. The project is ongoing.

John T. Tucker, III (b. 1959) became Chief Staff Attorney for the Supreme Court of Virginia in September 1990. Before that, he was a clerk for Court of Appeals Judge Lawrence Koontz, in private practice in Richmond, and a deputy clerk in the clerk's office of the Supreme Court of Virginia. A native of Richmond and a graduate of Henrico High School, he earned a law degree from the University of Richmond and an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia.

Scope and Content

Oral history interview of John T. Tucker, III, Norfolk State University Dean, at the Supreme Court of Virginia in Richmond, June 25, 2018. He talks about his family, growing up in Richmond and Henrico County, attending Catholic schools in Richmond and Henrico High School and the University of Virginia and University of Richmond. He discusses his experiences clerking for Judge Lawrence Koontz and the early history of the Court of Appeals, his philosophy of management, working with the judges of the Court of Appeals, and preparing for a second career as a deacon in the Catholic Church.

Index Terms

• Newby-Alexander, Cassandra.
• Oral histories (document genres) -- Virginia.
• Tucker, John Thomas III, 1959-.
• Virginia. Court of Appeals.