The Rogan Family Perpetual Trophy for Teach Democracy’s Annual Los Angeles County High School Mock Trial Competition

The Rogan Family Perpetual Trophy, established in 2024, honors the remarkable achievements and lifelong commitment to justice and democracy of Richard R. Rogan, Mary Goode Rogan, and Patrick G. Rogan.

Richard R. Rogan served as chief deputy attorney general from 1959 to 1963 under State Attorney General Stanley Mosk. He also held federal appointments in Washington, D.C., as special assistant to the U.S. attorney general, personnel officer in the Executive Office of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and executive secretary to the Board of Economic Warfare. While practicing as a business and personal injury attorney at Rogan & Rogan, a law firm he opened with his wife Mary, Richard represented the state of California in the Federation of Young Democrats, also serving on the Democratic County Committee for Los Angeles and the State Central Committee. Richard also served on an early Board of Directors for Teach Democracy, known then as Constitutional Rights Foundation, from 1965 to 1978.

Richard Rogan and Mary Goode met while attending Yale Law School, where Mary was one of only four women in her graduating class. After graduating, she served in the Office of the General Counsel for the U.S. Treasury Department in Washington, D.C. and later joined her husband in opening Rogan & Rogan where she practiced in a variety of areas, including commercial, real estate, and family law. In 1965, Mary was appointed to the Burbank Municipal Court by Governor Pat Brown and, ten years later, was promoted to the Los Angeles Superior Court by Governor Jerry Brown. Mary sat as a superior court judge in Pasadena and was known for being tough yet fair in her sentencing, while also showing interest and providing guidance to those she placed on probation.

In dedication and generosity, this trophy was made possible by Patrick G. Rogan. Much like his parents, Richard and Mary, Patrick has devoted his career to law. As a trial attorney, first in the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office and later with Lillick McHose and Charles, Pillsbury Madison, and his own firm, Rogan Lehrman, Patrick has tried more than 130 superior court cases to verdict, as well as both civil and criminal cases in the U.S. District Court. These cases ranged from anti-trust suits, major product and lender-liability matters, class actions, aviation accidents, and maritime claims involving the Longshore and Harbor Worker’s Compensation Act, among other matters. Over the course of his career, Patrick has served as a valued mentor to many and has received the honor of induction into numerous organizations recognizing outstanding achievements of trial attorneys. In recognition of his trial skills in civil and criminal matters in State and Federal Court, Patrick was elected a Fellow in The American College of Trial Lawyers, The International Society of Barristers, American Board of Trial Advocates, awarded the rank of AV Preeminent by Martindale Hubbell for more than 25 years, and has been a member of SuperLawyers for more than 20 years.

Teach Democracy and the many students and teachers we serve remain extremely grateful for the continued generous support of the Rogan family, and we are proud to present this trophy to the first-place Los Angeles County High School Mock Trial team in the family’s honor.