Mercedes Deiz

Mercedes Deiz (December 13, 1917 – October 5, 2005) was an American lawyer. She became the first black woman admitted to the Oregon State Bar, and was also the first black woman to serve as a district court judge and the first to be elected as a county circuit court judge.

Early years The oldest of ten children, Mercedes Deiz (born Mercedes Francis Lopez) was born in New York City in 1917 to Czechoslovak and Cuban parents. Deiz graduated high school at age 16, and worked as a maid, theater usher, switchboard operator and ticket clerk, and attended Hunter College in New York City. Mercedes Deiz worked as a litigator for several years, and also as an administrative law judge for worker's compensation disputes. Deiz would also become the first black female district court judge in Oregon after she was appointed by Governor Tom McCall in 1969. has bestowed the Judge Mercedes Deiz Award upon "an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to promoting minorities in the legal profession and in the community." When she died in 2005, she was praised for her life of dedicated public service, and for her "legendary" mentoring of young lawyers.