Charles Levin (judge)

Charles Leonard Levin (born April 28, 1926 in Detroit, Michigan) was a Michigan jurist. He served as a Michigan Court of Appeals judge from 1966 to 1972 and as a justice of the Michigan Supreme Court from 1973 to 1996. He attended the University of Michigan where he received his B.A. in 1946 and his LL.B. in 1947 from the University of Michigan Law School.^[1]

When he decided to run for the Michigan Supreme Court, Levin did not feel comfortable running as either a Democratic or Republican nominee. He then formed his own party and nominated himself. He was elected to two additional terms as an independent candidate. During his tenure on the bench, he gained the respect of many colleagues, prompting his nephew, U.S. District Court Judge Avern Cohn to note on his retirement, "Justice Levin has displayed scholarship, pragmatism, insight, honesty, courage, and humanity."^[2]

Levin's father, Theodore Levin, was a federal district court judge. His brother, Joseph Levin, ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives in 1974. His cousin Carl Levin was a U.S. Senator for Michigan from 1979 to 2015. His cousin Sander Levin is a U.S. Representative in Michigan's 9th District.

Charles married Patricia Joyce Oppenheim in 1956 and they had three children: Arthur David Levin (1959-2009), Amy Levin Ragen (b. 1961) and Fredrick Stuart Levin (b. 1963).

In 1999, Levin was remarried to a former law clerk, Helene White, a Michigan Court of Appeals judge since 1992. White was nominated by President Bill Clinton to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit at the end of his first term. Her nomination was blocked by Michigan's then-U.S. Senator, Spencer Abraham for the entirety of Clinton's second term. In an unexpected move, White was later re-nominated to the Sixth Circuit by President George W. Bush on April 15, 2008. The couple divorced in November 2006.

Charles Levin and Helene White have two children, Benjamin Joseph White Levin (b. 1993) and Francesca Rhoda White Levin (b. 1996). Levin resides in Detroit.

References

1. "Student Profile: The Honorable Charles L. Levin". University of Michigan Law School. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
2. Elisha Fink (September 2000). "Michigan Lawyers in History--Justice Charles Levin: A Scholarly Independent". Michigan Bar Journal (State Bar of Michigan). Retrieved December 7, 2010.