A person who's dispensing justice for that period of time, he's going to have influence.

I just can't imagine to practice law without him around.

It was never about what the exact letter of the law was, it was about what people were like, and as a prosecutor, if you don't understand people you're really not going to be a very good prosecutor.

He could be very stern with you, but when he was being stern, he felt like that was good for you. If you had done something stupid, he wouldn't mind pointing it out and that's good for you.

They liked the thought of riding around the countryside dispensing justice under a banyan tree.

It tremendously raises the stakes. Now he'll be in a position (as chief justice) to influence the direction of the court for the next 30 years.