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Subject: [CASANFRA] JIC Bio of S. Rosenheim (Journalism in California Bk)
Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 17:55:21 EST

JOURNALISM IN CALIFORNIA

BY JOHN P. YOUNG

Pacific Coast and Exposition Biographies

CHRONICLE PUBLISHING COMPANY
San Francisco, California
1915

Page 227

Great Men and Great Men's Achievements
Form the Background for
California's Progress

Page 317

Samuel Rosenheim

During the more than a quarter of a century in which Samuel Rosenheim has
been engaged in practicing law he has widened his field to a really
remarkable extent, considering the many branches of his profession in which
he has successfully practiced. He can hardly be said to have specialized, as
do the majority of lawyers. He has been, and is, equally at home in all
law's subdivisions.
Mr. Rosenheim is the son of A. Rosenheim and Pauline (Schwab) Rosenheim.
He was born November 17, 1863, in Portland, Oregon, and secured his education
in the Portland and San Francisco public schools. In 1886 Mr. Rosenheim
began studying law in the offices of Williams, Ach & Wood in Portland, of
which firm George H. Williams, United States Attorney General under President
Grant, was senior member.
A year later, in 1887, Mr. Rosenheim removed to San Francisco and entered
the law offices of Rothschild & Ach. He was admitted to the bar in 1889 and
thereafter had his office with those of the firm until 1900. From then on
until 1906 he practiced alone, but in later years formed an association with
Albert M. Johnson, brother of Governor Hiram Johnson of California. Johnson
died soon afterward, however, and since then Mr. Rosenheim has practiced
entirely alone.
As heretofore stated, Mr. Rosenheim is engaged in all branches of civil
law, with even some work in the criminal courts. Throughout his professional
career he has been consistently active cases of note was the Agacio divorce
suit, which involved more questions of international law than perhaps any
other divorce action on record. It lasted over a period of two years.
Agacio, who at the time was the Republic of Salvador's minister to
France, sued for divorce in San Francisco, claiming American citizenship..
His true identity was established, however, after he had cut off the
allowance of his wife, who then resided in England. The wife consulted a
number of lawyers of international fame, among them Sir Charles Russell and
Sir George Lewis of London and Frederick R. Coudert of New York and Paris,
who advised her that she could do nothing. Mr. Rosenheim, however,
representing Mrs. Rosenheim, secured a decree in her favor after a money
settlement had been arranged in Paris. The case attracted a great deal of
attention, both in America and abroad
In 1907, and subsequently, Mr. Rosenheim was of counsel of the Creditors
association in suits against the directors and stockholders of the defunct
California Safe Deposit & Trust Company, whose failure involved $12,000,000.
His success in this litigation may be measured by the fact that the
Creditors' association has paid its members as much, to dare, in recoveries
from the directors and stockholders as has the Trust company receivers.
If Mr. Rosenheim has laid stress on any particular kind of law practice, it
has been on corporation, liability insurance, bankruptcy and probate matters.
He has defended hundreds of damage suits brought against assured under their
policies, and almost invariably has won a complete victory or has arranged
satisfactory adjustments.
He has played a considerable part in the past few years in reconstruction
work arising from the failure of railroads or other public service
corporations. In fact he is consulted in nearly all-important cases of
industrial or public service corporation difficulties that occur locally. He
has often been called in to assist corporations in danger of financial ruin,
and has usually succeeded in tiding matters over until difficulties have been
readjusted. Along this line he has done considerable work for insolvent
financial institutions, being considered an authority on failures involving
intricate questions of directors' liability or questions going into figures
and counting. Also has he had much practice in mechanic's lien and admiralty
matters, and even in mining cases. But throughout he has counseled against
long drawn-out litigation, believing that this is hurtful to client and
lawyer alike.
Mr. Rosenheim has been too busy with his legal work to take much active
part in polities, although he is a strong Republican in sympathies. Not long
since he was recommended by Governor Johnson to the Industrial Accident
Commission as its attorney, but finding the position would command all of his
time, Mr. Rosenheim declined an appointment.
Besides belonging to a number of charitable organizations, Mr. Rosenheim is a
member of the B'nai B'rith, Masonic Order, Traffic Bureau of the Merchants'
Association, Fly-casting Club and Civic League of Improvement Clubs and the
Bar Association. He was married September 18, 1901, in San Francisco to Mrs.
Fannie Myer.

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