Private practice, Chicago, Illinois, 1846-1848
Private practice, Jefferson, Wisconsin, 1848-1850
Private practice, Sacramento, California, 1850
Private practice, Nevada City and San Francisco, California, 1850-1861
City attorney, San Francisco, California, 1854-
Private practice, San Francisco, California, and Virginia City, Nevada, 1861-1862
Judge, California District Court, Twelfth Judicial District, 1862-1863
Justice, Supreme Court of California, 1863-1869; chief justice, 1868-1869