NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana Supreme Court Associate Justice Harry Lemmon, a resident of Luling, announced his retirement from the bench as of May 16, after 21 years of service. Lemmon, 70, is still five years away from mandatory retirement. He is the husband of U.S. District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon and they are the parents of sociologist Patrick Lemmon, psychologist Dr. Carla Lemmon, and lawyers, Andrew, Lauren, Roslyn and Jack Lemmon. They also have five grandchildren. “Retirement is a tough decision,” Lemmon said, “especially for a judge who is very active and in excellent health. I reached my decision because I never again want to have to tell my wife, my children, and especially my grandchildren, No, I can’t do what you asked because I have to work.'” Justice Lemmon, a native of Morgan City, graduated with honors from Loyola University of Law and practiced law in St. Charles Parish. He was elected to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal in 1970 and to the state supreme court in 1980, where he was re-elected twice without opposition. For more than 20 years, Lemmon has chaired the Board of Governors of the Louisiana Judicial College, which provides continuing legal education for all Louisiana judges. He served an an adjunct professor of law at Loyola Law School and has also taught at LSU Law Center and Tulane School of Law. He has also been named to the LSU Law Center Hall of Fame. Co-author of the Louisiana Civil Law Tretise on Civil Procedure, he also served on several committees of the Louisiana State Law Institute, which makes recommendations to the legislature on revisions of the law. Lemmon is also currently the chairman of the American Bar Association’s Committee on Continuing Education for Appellate Judges, and plans to continue that service for the next two years. Lemmon added he won’t sit in a rocking chair, but plans a number of activities, including a second volume of the Louisiana Civil Law Tretise on Civil Procedure. “I am grateful to all of the people who supported and assisted me in my elections and in my judicial career. I hope I have served them well.”