Thomas C. Gordon Jr. papersMSS.04.1Arthur J. Morris Law Library Special Collections

Arthur J. Morris Law Library580 Massie RoadUniversity of VirginiaCharlottesville, Virginia 22903archives@law.virginia.eduURL:

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-07-30 11:00:43 +0000.Description is written in: English, Latin script.Describing Archives: A Content Standard Arthur J. Morris Law Library Special Collections Thomas C. Gordon Jr. papers Gordon, Thomas C., Jr., 1915-2003 MSS.04.1 Archival Resource Key Previous Archival Resource Key /repositories/4/resources/717 3 Cubic Feet 3 archival boxes, 11 paintings circa 1965 - 1997 English Scope and Contents

This collection contains notebooks, memoranda, and correspondence between Judge Gordon and the University of Virginia School of Law, the Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia, the Virginia Law Review, and the law firm of McGuire Woods. The use of language is a recurrent topic in this collection. There are extensive articles and newspaper clippings about the use of plain English and legal writing, as well as a collection of Gordon's speeches and lecture notes on legal writing.

The collection also includes eleven paintings.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The papers of Justice Thomas C. Gordon were donated to the Special Collections Department of the Arthur J. Morris Law Library in March 2004 by the law firm of McGuire Woods.

Biographical / Historical

Thomas Christian Gordon Jr. was born in Richmond, Virginia, on 14 July 1915. His parents were Thomas Christian Gordon and Ruth Nelson (Robins). He attended the University of Virginia, receiving his BA in 1936 and his LLB from the Law School in 1938. Gordon was admitted to the Virginia Bar in 1937. From 1938-1940, he was an associate for the Richmond law firm of Parrish, Butcher & Parrish; from 1940-1965 and 1972-1983 he was an associate and partner of the law firm of McGuire, Woods and Battle, where his specialty was business law, and he was president of the Virginia Bar Association from 1963-1964. In 1965, he was nominated as an associate justice of what is now the Supreme Court of Virginia.

Justice Gordon was a lecturer at the University of Virginia Law School (1970-1972) and at the Marshall-Wythe School of Law (1979-1981). As a student at Virginia Law School, he was part of the editorial board of the Virginia Law Review. He was trustee and president of the Crippled Childrens Hospital of Richmond. He was part of the Fellow American Bar Foundation and a member of the American Bar Association. He retired from the law in 1981 and pursued his love to paint, took lessons at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and became an accomplished artist. He died 17 May 2003.

Law -- Language Painting, American Judges Law -- Study and teaching Gordon, Thomas C., Jr., 1915-2003 University of Virginia. School of Law Legal Writing. Associates Orientation Program, Fredericksburg, Va. [Handouts]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/7611219861Legal Writing. Correspondence and MemorandaArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761131970-19811Legal Writing, Oral Writing and Opinion Writing. [Miscellaneous Articles]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/76114n.d.1Magazine and T. V. Program Reviews. CorrespondenceArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761151968, 19791McGuire Woods LLP. CorrespondenceArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761161965, 19731Printed Materials with Gordon's Handwritten Notes [and some] Miscellaneous Funny MaterialsArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761171969 and n.d.1Speeches and Notes. [ black notebook]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761181966-19741Sullivan and Other Acts re Plain LanguageArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761191978-1979, 19972Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia. Correspondence and MemorabiliaArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761201965-1971, 1983, 19912Virginia Law Review. CorrespondenceArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761211969-19712University of Virginia School of Law. CorrespondenceArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761221965-1970, 19732University of Virginia School of Law Seminar. [ black notebook with Gordon's teaching notes]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761231970- 1971, 19732Writing - Correspondence. [Includes correspondence with Justice Lewis F. Powell, Edward Wood, Hardy C. Dillard, Emerson G. Spies]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761241965, 1970-19802Writing - General. Miscellaneous articles and newspaper clippingsArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761251973-19802NotebooksArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/76126Applied Lawyering Notebook. [William and Mary]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/7612719801Continuing Legal Education for AssociatesArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/7612819812Intensive Writing Course. [William and Mary]Archival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/7612919793Lectures on Legal WritingArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761301984-19914SpeechesArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761311965-19835PaintingsArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/76132CaravatiArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761331986 General

This painting is located in WB 314.

The James at the Pony PastureArchival Resource Key/repositories/4/archival_objects/761347/1986General