Jack Doherty was bont on August 23, 1935, the son of John J. and Edith M. Doherty. He grew up in San Francisco's Mission District surrounded by a close-knit Irish community. As a child, he was a San Francisco Seals minor league baseball team fan and attended games with his father. He later became a diehard Forty Niner fan with season tickets.
After graduating from Riordan High School, Jack attended USF where he was sports editor for the newspaper and president of the Irish Club. He had a short stint as a pitcher on the baseball team before hurting his shoulder. Graduating cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree, he then went on to USF's School of Law where he graduated second in his class.
As Deputy City Attorney for the City and County of San Francisco for 22 years, Jack's work was divided equally between litigation and non-litigation. He had extensive trial experience. He successfully argued nineteen appellate cases, including six cases before the California Supreme Court. He handled over a hundred large cases before the San Francisco Assessment Appeals Board. After retiring in 1990, Jack was appointed to the Contra Costa County Assessment Appeals Board where he served for five years.
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