• Arizona Legal Legacies
  • Meet the legends behind the law – Interviews with Arizona attorneys

James D. Cameron

University of Arizona Law,
class of 1954

State Bar of Arizona
member since 1954

Featured Case:
Spur Industries, Inc. v. Del E. Webb Development Co.108 Ariz. 178 (1972) 494 P.2d 700

(b. 1925-d. 2003) James Cameron was born in Richmond, California. His family described his early years as marked by tragedy, but says he was driven to become educated and successful. He attended the University of California in Los Angeles and earned his Bachelor of Arts in political science at the University of California in Berkeley in 1950. He earned his law degree from the University of Arizona School of Law in 1954 and began practicing law in Tucson. He and his young family later moved to Yuma where he first ran for judicial office. In 1960, Cameron was appointed to the Superior Court in Yuma County, and in 1964 was elected to the Arizona Court of Appeals. In 1971, Judge Cameron became Justice Cameron by an election to the Arizona Supreme Court. He was Arizona’s 27th Chief Justice, serving on the Supreme Court from January 4, 1971, to February 1, 1992, a total of 21 years.

(excerpt from http://www.supreme.state.az.us/media/archive/misc/CameronObit.htm)