William R. Moser

William Robert Moser (October 14, 1927 – April 11, 2003) was an American lawyer and judge, he was Judge of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals for 13 years. Earlier, he was a Wisconsin Circuit Court judge in Milwaukee County, and represented Milwaukee County in the Wisconsin State Senate as a Democrat.

Background Moser was born October 14, 1927, in Chicago. He was educated in Milwaukee parochial schools (St. Michael's Elementary and St. John's Cathedral High School. From 1945-1947 he served in the United States Army as a paratrooper and a criminal investigator; then earned his Bachelor of Science degree at St. Norbert College, and LL.B. from Marquette University Law School, and went into practice as an attorney. He became a member of the Advisory Council to Mayor of Milwaukee Frank P. Zeidler, and a director or active member of various civic, veterans and fraternal organizations.

Legislative office In 1956 he was elected to the 6th Senatorial District (the 7th, 10th, & 13th Wards of the City of Milwaukee) to succeed fellow Democrat William A. Schmidt, who was not running for re-election. Moser obtained a plurality in a four-way Democratic primary election against State Representative Cecil B. Brown Jr., former State Representative John Schaller, and Brown Deer village trustee Fred W. Voigt; and was unopposed in the general election. He served as the floor leader for Senate Democrats in the 1960 session, and was elected a Kennedy delegate to the 1960 Democratic National Convention. He easily turned aside challenges from Schaller in the 1960 primary, and from Republican Delbert Fowler in the general election; and served again as the Democratic floor leader in the 1961 session, leading the fight against the adoption of a sales tax in Wisconsin; but resigned effective Feb. 1, 1962 to become a Milwaukee County judge. He was succeeded by fellow Democrat Martin J. Schreiber.

Judiciary In 1971, he was elected without opposition as a Wisconsin Circuit Court judge. He was re-elected in 1977, and in April 1978 was elected to the newly created Court of Appeals District 1. In 1980, he fended off a re-election challenge from Christ T. Seraphim, winning by 195,256 to 137,262. He was unopposed in 1986, and became Presiding Judge of the District 1 Court of Appeals. He did not run for re-election in 1992, and was succeeded on the Court by Charles B. Schudson.

Death Moser died April 11, 2003, leaving behind a wife, Mary Bernadette, a son, William, and a daughter, Mary Magdalen.