ROBERTS BREAKS SILENCE IN SIMI.

Byline: Eric Leach Staff Writer

SIMI VALLEY - In his first major address since being sworn in as chief justice of the United States, John Roberts told a sold-out audience at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Wednesday that lessons he learned from the former president were still helping him today.

``Ronald Reagan changed the history of our country for the better and forever,'' Roberts told the crowd of 870 people, including Nancy Reagan and President Reagan's Secretary of State George Schultz.

Roberts stressed Reagan's belief that laws apply to the government as well as the common man.

``The rule of law is a cathedral we have to build brick by brick,'' he said, referring to the need to help people all over the world share the kind of freedom Americans get through a fair judicial system.

``One of the pressing needs that remains in the ongoing battle for freedom around the world since the Berlin Wall was torn down is to establish the independent legal institutions that can give effect to the rule of law in emerging democracies,'' he said.

Roberts, 51, who served as associate council to President Reagan, was guest speaker for the library's annual Reagan Lecture which traditionally focuses on Reagan's contributions.

Roberts assumed the office of chief justice last September after his nomination by President George W. Bush. Roberts said he had resolved not to accept any speaking engagements during his first year on the court, but changed his mind after Nancy Reagan invited him to the Reagan Library.

Roberts is the nation's youngest chief justice in two centuries and is known for his charm and wit, which he demonstrated throughout a speech that kept the audience laughing Wednesday night.

``I thought he had a great sense of humor and the ability to communicate with people of all ages, which is unique,'' said Rana Kawar, a third-year law student at Pepperdine University who attended the lecture with fellow classmates and the Pepperdine's law school dean Kenneth Starr.

When Roberts was asked how he compared his service on the U.S. Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court, he said appeals court judges spend a lot of time worrying about what the Supreme Court means.

``On the Supreme Court, we don't worry so much about it,'' he said.

He expressed special thanks to the archivists at the Reagan Library for preparing thousands of pages of documents related to his work in the Reagan administration for the Senate Judiciary Committee.

One of the documents was a 1986 resignation letter he wrote to Reagan that said, ``As a lawyer it was a source of great satisfaction to serve a president who appreciated the framers' vision of a limited federal government of laws, not men.''

Associated Press contributed to this story.

Eric Leach, [phone]

eric.leach(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Chief Justice John Roberts is known for his wit, which he showed during a speech Wednesday at the Reagan Library.

(2) A personal invitation from Nancy Reagan convinced the chief justice to speak Wednesday night at the Reagan Library.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer