Paul Dryden Barns (March 20, 1894 – September 22, 1973) was a justice of the Florida Supreme Court from December 2, 1946, to September 1, 1949.
Born in Plant City, Florida,[1] Barns was an aerial gunner and then an aerial gunnery instructor in the United States Army Air Corps during World War I.[2] He graduated from the University of Florida College of Law in 1920,[3] and became a judge of the Dade Civil Court of Record in 1929, and then a circuit judge until his election to the Florida Supreme Court in 1946,[2] to a seat vacated by the retirement of Justice Armstead Brown.[4]
Barns "thoroughly disliked Tallahassee",[4] but expressed a sense of civic obligation to continue in the position until his resignation in 1949.[4] Barns then returned to private practice in Miami, also occasionally teaching at the University of Miami School of Law, and serving as a substitute judge by special appointment.[1]
Barns died in Miami, Florida, from pulmonary fibrosis attributed to his military service.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 Erik Robinson, "Florida Supreme Court Justices: List of Life Dates", Florida Supreme Court Historical Society (June 2010).
- 1 2 "Paul D. Barns, 79, Served On Florida Supreme Court", Tampa Bay Times (September 23, 1973), p. 11-B.
- ↑ "Know Your Candidate for Supreme Court Justice", Tampa Bay Times (April 30, 1946), p. 11.
- 1 2 3 Joseph A. Boyd Jr., Randall Reder, "A History of the Florida Supreme Court", University of Miami Law Review (1981), p. 1058.