Los Angeles County
Biographies
JUDGE CARLOS S. HARDY
Judge
Carlos S. hardy, recognized as one of the most distinguished members of the Los Angeles bar, who is a former judge of the superior
court, member of the bar in three states, and an outstanding international
authority on fraternal insurance law, was born near Minden,
in Webster parish, Louisiana,
and is a son of Charles L. and Elizabeth Hardy.
His grandfather, Henry Hardy, fought in the war of 1812 and also in the
Mexican war in 1846. His father, Charles
L. Hardy was himself a soldier in the Confederate Army for the four years of
the Civil war. Judge Hardy’s
great-great-great-grandfather on the maternal side of his family was John
Ratcliff, one of the founders of Virginia and
also one of the first settlers in Jamestown.
Judge Hardy
studied in private schools in the south, where he was reared, and was a student
in the law department of the University
of Texas in 1885-86, and
he received the degrees of Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws. In 1897, he was given the degree of Doctor of
Civil Laws by the Chicago Law School,
and in 1898 the Illinois
Law College
conferred upon him a similar honor. Judge
Hardy was admitted to practice before the supreme court of Texas
on June 15, 1886, before he had reached twenty years of age, and in 1901 he was
admitted to the Supreme Court of the United States. He is now a member of the bars of Texas, Illinois, and California. He practiced law in Texas
until 1892, following which he was a member of the Illinois
bar until 1909, in which year he came to California.
For
twenty-five years, Judge Hardy specialized in insurance law of fraternal
organizations. For ten years, he was
general counsel for the supreme lodge of the Knights of Pythias. He managed several million dollars worth of
investments for that society in addition to his legal work. For five years, he was supreme president of
the Fraternal Brotherhood, a twenty-five million dollar organization, with
headquarters in Los Angeles. Judge Hardy has a personal acquaintanceship with
nearly all the high fraternal society officials of the world.
Not only as
a lawyer is Judge Hardy held in high repute, but as a lecturer, public speaker,
and writer he has gained renown. During
the war he was vice chairman of the Four-Minute Men for Los Angeles County. During this period, he was likewise chairman
for the speakers committees and a member of the Red Cross and the Liberty Loan
Committees. It is a notable fact that he
delivered over three hundred patriotic speeches during the time of war.
Judge Hardy
held a chair for eight years in the Illinois College of Law and for several
years was a lecturer in the postgraduate school of law at the University of Southern
California.
He is a member of the board of trustees of a number of educational and
social organizations.
In 1823,
Judge Hardy was appointed as a judge in the superior court of Los Angeles for a two-year term and in 1925
was elected for a full term of six years.
He remained on the bench until 1931, when he again entered the practice
of law in Los Angeles.
Judge Hardy
is married and the family home is in Los
Angeles, California. Mrs. Hardy is well-known as a writer of
exceptional talent and is the author of numerous juvenile stories and
books. She has also done commendable
work as a public speaker and has been much interested in club affairs. She is the founder and president of the
Cosmopolitan Dinner Club. Three sons and
three daughters were born to Judge Hardy.
The sons were all in the United
States military service during this
country’s participation tin the World war.
Rex G. Hardy, who was a captain, is now a successful lawyer of Los Angeles. Harry E. Hardy at the close of the war became
connected with a Boston
banking house, and Oliver C. Hardy is both a lawyer and an orange grower. The daughters are Ethelyn, Grace, and Marian.
Judge Hardy
is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks, of the Royal
League, of the Royal Arcanum, the Maccabees, the Neighbors of Woodcraft, the
Knights of Pythias, the Fraternal Brotherhood, the Los Angeles Athletic Club,
and the Los Angeles Breakfast Club and various other clubs and legal societies.
Judge Hardy
has achieved much in the law, both as a jurist and as an attorney, and has
always observed the most ethical relations with his opponents, also has
performed notable service for the many clients and organization which have
sought his counsel. His fine
capabilities have also been expressed in his citizenship and his democratic
relations with his fellows.
Transcribed
By: Michele Y. Larsen on July 4, 2012.
Source: California
of the South Vol. V,
by John Steven McGroarty, Pages 120-122,
Clarke Publ., Chicago, Los Angeles,
Indianapolis. 1933.
© 2012 Michele
Y. Larsen.
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