Theodore Z. Davis
The Honorable Theodore Z. Davis is one of the four
founding chairs of the National Consortium on Racial and Ethnic
Fairness in the Courts and served as its second national chairman.
This organization has grown in nineteen years from the original four
state members including New Jersey, New York, Washington State and
Michigan to include thirty-three states, the District of Columbia
and two Canadian provinces.
Judge Davis, a lifetime resident of Camden, New Jersey graduated
from Camden High School and enrolled in Temple University’s School
of Business. His undergraduate studies were interrupted by the
Korean War. He was still in boot camp when the war ended. Judge
Davis volunteered for the Finance Corp and was sent to Finance
School at Fort Benjamin Harrison. After graduating third in his
class and completing his tour of duty, Davis returned to Temple to
graduate from business school in 1958 with a degree in Accounting.
Unable to sit for the CPA examination because he could not satisfy
the requirement to work a minimum of two years with a CPA firm (CPA
firms were not hiring blacks) Judge Davis became a federal agent
with the United States Internal Revenue Service and attended Temple
Law School at night.
In January 1963, Theodore Davis received his J.D. degree. At that
time, lawyers had to serve a nine-month clerkship to practice law in
New Jersey. Unable to find a clerkship because of his race, Davis
continued to work for the IRS. After some months, he received a call
from Judge Robert Burke Johnson, the first black Superior Court
judge in New Jersey, to determine if he would be interested in a
position with the Camden City Attorney’s Office. Davis was
appointed a part-time assistant city attorney of the City of Camden
in February 1964.
Although he had a legal job, Davis was unable to present a case in
court since he had never served a clerkship. After some months, the
city office successfully petitioned the Supreme Court to allow
Davis’ work as an attorney to substitute for the clerkship
experience. During this same year, Davis joined the firm of Bennett,
Wingate, and Pascoe where he specialized in corporate and federal
law. This association with this law firm continued for 17 years.
In 1966, Davis became a part-time assistant county prosecutor for
Camden County. Then, at the request of the Mayor of Camden, in 1969
he was appointed to municipal court eventually serving as the
presiding judge. In 1974, the late Richard J. Hughes appointed Judge
Davis as a member of the Supreme Court Board of Bar Examiners.
Subsequently, he became its chairman until 1981.
In 1981, after serving as a municipal court judge for 12 years,
Judge Davis was elevated to the Superior Court. There, he served as
Chair of the Supreme Court Task Force on Minority Concerns. Under
Judge Davis’ leadership, a six-year long examination of race and
ethnic bias in the New Jersey Judiciary was completed. The Final
report was published in 1992. It contained 63 recommendations, 53 of
which were approved by the Supreme Court for implementation.
Judge Davis was appointed presiding judge of New Jersey’s Superior
Court, Chancery Division-General Equity, Camden County in 1991, a
position he held until his retirement in July 2003.
When out of the courtroom, Judge Davis was in the classroom at
Temple University’s School of Law as a lecturer for seven years.
As a loyal and active Temple alumnus he presently serves on the
board of trustees at Temple University, on the Board of Temple
University Health System, and is in-house Counsel for the Cherry
Hill firm of Cozen and O’Connor. In December Judge Davis was named
interim Chief Operating Officer of Camden City.
Honorable Theodore Z. Davis and his wife, Joan, are the proud
parents of one adult son.
Updated February 21, 2007
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