Monday, April 2, 2007
Page 3
Professor Choper Named to State Horse Racing Board
By a MetNews Staff Writer
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Friday named Boalt Hall professor and former dean Jesse Choper to the California Horse Racing Board.
The appointment of Choper, 71, who has been a lawyer and legal educator for 50 years and has been at Boalt since 1965, requires Senate confirmation. Choper, a prominent legal scholar and author, was the dean of the school for 10 years and taught at the University of Minnesota School of Law from 1961 to 1965.
He currently holds the title of Earl Warren professor of public law. He clerked for then-Chief Justice Warren after graduating from law school at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960.
Choper’s major publications include the books, Judicial Review and the National Political Process: A Functional Reconsideration of the Role of the Supreme Court and Securing Religious Liberty: Principles for Judicial Interpretation of the Religion Clauses.
He has also written widely-used casebooks on constitutional law and on corporations.
He has described horse racing in a campus publication as “a full-time hobby and my only one,” explaining that he attends races throughout Northern California—“even county fairs when they’re the only race in town”—every weekend. He said he became hooked after a colleague took him to the track 35 years ago.
He described the benefits of his pastime thusly:
“It certainly does take your mind off your other concerns of the day. The cost is very modest — sure, you lose a little bit over the course of time, but there’s no hobby that’s as reasonably priced.”
Members of the board must be confirmed by the state Senate. They are paid $100 per day when attending meetings.
Choper is registered decline-to-state.
Copyright 2007, Metropolitan News Company