In Memoriam
Ray Christopher Thomas Ray Christopher Thomas of Little Rock died on December 11, 2012, at the age of 63. He graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 1971 with a degree in Business Administration. Afterwards he attended the UALR School of Law where he received a JD degree and served on the Arkansas Law Review. As a professional, Chris served as Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit in 1976, followed by nine years of private practice of law, according to his obituary. He was a member of the Arkansas Bar Association where he served on the House of Delegates while also participating in the work of various committees of the Bar Association. He was also a member of the Pulaski County and American Bar Associations and the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association. From 1985 through July of 1988 he was the Executive Secretary of the Arkansas Judicial Department, now known as the Administrative Office of the Courts. In this position, he worked to reorganize the Judicial Department by making it a more direct agency of the Supreme Court of Arkansas to improve its efficiency. He also collaborated with many others to enact an amendment to
the Arkansas Constitution which increased the jurisdiction of the Municipal Courts of the state. During this time he also was a member of the Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts Board and represented the Chief Justice on the Arkansas Crime Information Center Board. In 1988 he was appointed by the Arkansas Supreme Court to be the Director of the Office of Professional Programs. In that position he acted as the Executive Secretary for the Board of Law Examiners and Executive Secretary of the Arkansas Supreme Court. The Arkansas Judges and Lawyers Advocacy Program recently honored Chris with the Justice Robert L. Brown Community Support Award. Chris is survived by his wife, Mary Burbage Thomas; his daughter, Jennifer Anne Thomas Eddy; and his son, Jordan McClellan Thomas.
James A. Buttry James A. Buttry of Little Rock died January 7, 2013, at the age of 72. He graduated from the University of Arkansas School of Law (LLB) in 1963 and from Georgetown University (LLMTaxation) in 1966. He was Editor-in-Chief of the Arkansas Law Review. He served three years in the United States Army, being discharged as a Captain in 1966, according to his obitu-
ary. He practiced law in Newport, Arkansas ,from September 1966 to September 1967, with Fred Pickens, Wayne Boyce and Kenneth Castleberry. In 1967 he joined the Little Rock firm now known as Friday, Eldredge and Clark, LLP, where he actively practiced law as a bond lawyer until 2010. He was of counsel to the law firm at the time of his death. He was a member of the Arkansas Bar Association where he served on the Executive Council and House of Delegates. He also served on numerous committees, including the Lawyers for Literacy, Law Related Education, and International Law Committees. He served as chair of the Young Lawyers Section in 1970. He was a Fellow of the Arkansas Bar Foundation. He was a member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers. He was a member of the American, Arkansas and Pulaski County Bar Associations. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Virginia Ann Hays Buttry; and three sons, Altus H. Buttry, Edwin C. Buttry and James A. Buttry. William K. Ball William K. “Bill” Ball of Auburn, Washington died October 13, 2012, at the age of 85. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Arkansas and his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Arkansas School of Law. He entered the U.S. Army in 1945 where he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant, according to his obituary. He began his law career as a clerk for Justice Rose Smith. In June of 1954, he became an associate attorney with the law firm of Williamson & Williamson in Monticello. The firm later became Ball & Bird and continues today as the Barton Law Firm. He was a member of the Arkansas Bar Association. He was a special associate justice to the Arkansas Supreme Court and a member of the Arkansas State Law Examiners. n
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