Former justices

Justice William G. Callow

Justice William G. Callow

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice: 1977–1992
Life: 1921–2018

William Grant Callow was born April 9, 1921, in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He graduated from Waukesha High School in 1939. He earned a bachelor's degree in economics and a law degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1943 and 1948, respectively. He died March 6, 2018.

Callow served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II and in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean Conflict.

From 1952 to 1960, Callow served as city attorney in Waukesha. He was elected judge for Waukesha County court three times between 1961 and 1973. In 1967, he was appointed a Wisconsin Commissioner for the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws.

As a trial judge, Callow pioneered group therapy for drunk drivers and victim/offender reconciliation in property crime. He lectured to more than 300 Wisconsin high schools on the subject of teenage marriage, misconduct and the law. He also authored two related booklets for the State Bar of Wisconsin.

In 1977, Callow won a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. He is the only county judge to have been elected directly to the state Supreme Court. He was re-elected in 1987. Callow served on the faculty for the Wisconsin Judicial College and the National Judicial College. He also lectured at the University of Wisconsin and Marquette University Law Schools. He was an elected fellow of the American Bar Foundation.

Callow retired from the Supreme Court in 1992.

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