Collection Guide
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Mosk (Stanley) Papers
MSS 0101
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Contributing Institution:
CJCL Special Collections and Archives
Title: Stanley Mosk Papers
Creator:
Mosk, Stanley, 1912-2001
Identifier/Call Number: MSS 0101
Physical Description:
234 Linear feet
Date (inclusive): 1901-2011, bulk 1936-2001
Abstract: The Stanley Mosk Papers consist of approximately 234 linear feet of personal and family papers, political campaign files,
professional papers, subject files, publications, books, newspapers, speeches, photographs, artifacts, and audiovisual recordings
spanning the entirety of the twentieth century, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1936 to Justice Mosk's death in
2001. This wide-ranging collection documents Mosk's long career of public service—as Executive Secretary to California Governor
Culbert L. Olson (1939-1943); judge for the Superior Court of California, Los Angeles County (1943-1958); California Attorney
General (1959-1964); and associate justice for the California Supreme Court (1964-2001)—as well as his personal life and intellectual
preoccupations.
Language of Material:
English
Collection is open for research upon approval of written request. Requests should be submitted to: California Judicial Center
Library, Special Collections and Archives, 455 Golden Gate Avenue, Room 4617, San Francisco, CA, 94102-7013, or by e-mail
to archives@jud.ca.gov. All researchers must sign the California Judicial Center Library Special Collections Access Agreement
form. This agreement can be sent electronically by request. Records in the collection may contain confidential information,
as defined in the Access Agreement. Publication or disclosure of such information is strictly prohibited.
Confidential records, including internal communications between Supreme Court of California justices and between California
Supreme Court justices and staff, attorney-client privileged communications, and communications between California Supreme
Court justices or court employees and third parties that reveal details of the court's decision-making processes, are restricted
and closed to research use.
Additionally, the following materials are restricted:
1) Superior Court of California, Los Angeles County, correspondence and papers, are restricted for 75 years after the date
of creation of the materials to protect the privacy of living persons.
2) Commission on Judicial Performance files are restricted. These files include internal communications of the California
Supreme Court, documents filed under seal, and other privileged and confidential material.
The collection was given to the California Judicial Center Library by the Honorable Richard M. Mosk in February 2002. The
majority of the papers were transferred to the library from Justice Stanley Mosk's chambers and home in San Francisco after
his death, with additions from the home of Richard Mosk.
The collection has been arranged in eight series: 1) Personal and Family Papers (1916-2002); 2) Political Campaigns Files
(1944-1998); 3) Professional Papers (1917-2001); 4) Publications, Newspapers, and Books (1901-2007); 5) Speeches (1948-2001);
6) Artifacts (1929-2010); 7) Photographs (1913-2001); and 8) Audiovisual Materials (1945-2011).
Born in San Antonio, Texas, in 1912, Stanley Mosk received his primary and secondary education in the public schools of Rockford,
Illinois. His involvement in community service developed early. A fledgling journalist, he co-edited his high school newspaper
and represented Rockford in the annual Illinois High School Press Conference. He was a member of the school's championship
debate team. An athlete as well as a scholar, he played baseball during his high school years and covered the football and
basketball seasons for the school paper.
Mosk received a bachelor of philosophy degree from the University of Chicago, Division of the Social Sciences, in June 1933.
He continued his education at Southwestern University School of Law and was admitted to the practice of law in California
in 1935.
He married Edna Mitchell on September 27, 1936. Their son, Richard, was born on May 18, 1939. Edna Mosk conducted a small
manufacturing business and was later a realtor in Beverly Hills as well as an artist. She played an active role in the management
of her husband's campaigns for attorney general in 1958 and 1962, and remained a lifelong Democrat, active in the party, until
her death in 1981.
Mosk's life of public service began with his appointment to the staff of Governor Culbert L. Olson in 1939. He served in the
cabinet as legal advisor and later as executive secretary. In 1943 he was appointed to the Superior Court in Los Angeles County.
He resigned his judgeship to serve in the U.S. Army during World War II. At the conclusion of his military service, he returned
to the bench, remaining until his successful campaign for attorney general. He won the 1958 election for that office by a
margin of more than one million votes.
In his nearly six years as attorney general, Mosk issued more than 1,500 written opinions in matters ranging from water rights
to voting rights. He is remembered for his strong stand in support of the right of African American golfer Charlie Sifford
to compete in the PGA Tour. Among his many constructive proposals in the field of law enforcement was the establishment of
the Commission on Peace Officers' Standards and Training.
Justice Mosk was appointed to the California Supreme Court in September 1964 and served until his death in June 2001. He is
the author of more than 1,400 opinions in matters as varied as the use of racial quotas as a basis for admission to medical
school (the Bakke decision); the ability of disabled parents to retain custody of their children; and the requirement that
physicians disclose treatment options and risks to their patients (the doctrine of informed consent). At his death on June
19, 2001, Justice Mosk was survived by his widow, Mrs. Kaygey Kash Mosk, and his son, Richard Mosk.
[Identification of item]; Stanley Mosk Papers, MSS 0101; [box number, folder number]; California Judicial Center Library.
The collection was processed by consulting archivist Andrea Hinding and CJCL staff after 2002. Additional processing work
was conducted by archivist Marie Silva in 2020-2022. Box and folder numbers were added; some materials were rehoused; and
restricted materials were identified and separated.
The Stanley Mosk Papers consist of approximately 234 linear feet of personal and family papers, political campaign files,
professional papers, subject files, publications, books, newspapers, speeches, photographs, artifacts, and audiovisual recordings
spanning the entirety of the twentieth century, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1936 to Justice Mosk's death in
2001. This wide-ranging collection documents Mosk's long career of public service—as Executive Secretary to California Governor
Culbert L. Olson (1939-1943); judge for the Superior Court of California, Los Angeles County (1943-1958); California Attorney
General (1959-1964); and associate justice for the California Supreme Court (1964-2001)—as well as his personal life and intellectual
preoccupations.
A careful documenter of his own life and accomplishments, Mosk maintained an extensive correspondence with scholars, journalists,
activists, elected officials, jurists, friends, and members of the public regarding political and legal issues, important
cases, national and international affairs, and other subjects, beginning in the 1940s and continuing until his death. Along
with other materials, this correspondence provides insight into the political and legal history of twentieth-century California.
As a political appointee, elected official, judge, and legal scholar, Mosk engaged with many of the major social and political
movements of the mid-to-late twentieth century. His papers reflect his and Edna Mosk's involvement in state and national Democratic
Party politics, especially between the years 1936 and 1967. A wide range of textual and visual materials document Mosk's relationships
with state politicians like Governors Culbert Olson and Edmund G. "Pat" Brown and national politicians like John F. Kennedy
and Robert F. Kennedy; his campaigns for Superior Court judge, Attorney General, and California Supreme Court justice; and
his and Edna Mosk's participation in Democratic presidential campaigns and conventions, particularly Kennedy's 1960 campaign.
Mosk's papers also illuminate the social movements with which he engaged as a supporter or critic, including the anti-communist
and far right movements of the 1950s and '60s, the civil rights movement of the same era, and the affirmative action debates
of the 1980s and '90s. These materials include files on the John Birch Society; materials related to fair housing and employment;
photographs of Martin Luther King, Jr., Loren Miller, and other civil rights icons; and extensive files on the Bakke case.
The contentious 1986 retention election—and Mosk's views on judicial independence and political attacks on the courts—are
documented in correspondence, subject files, publications, speeches, and audiovisual recordings.
Finally, the collection reveals Mosk's significant intellectual contributions to legal discourse through speeches, writings,
publications, and other materials exploring topics in criminal justice, civil liberties, federalism, and constitutional and
international law. These materials also reflect Mosk's involvement in a wide range of civic and professional organizations
and his commitment to the Jewish community and state of Israel.
Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by Richard M. Mosk were transferred to the
California Judicial Center Library upon Richard M. Mosk's death in 2016. Reproduction or publication of materials in this
collection beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the California Judicial Center Library. Please
contact archives@jud.ca.gov.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Attorneys general -- California
Justice, Administration of -- California
Law -- California
California. Supreme Court -- History
California. Supreme Court
California. Superior Court (Los Angeles County)
California. Office of the Attorney General
Mosk, Richard M.
Mosk, Edna