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Robert W. Clifford

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American judge (born 1937)
Robert W. Clifford
Associate Justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court
In office
August 1, 1986 – August 31, 2009
Appointed byJoseph E. Brennan
Preceded byElmer H. Violette
Succeeded byJoseph Jabar
Chief Justice of the Maine Superior Court
In office
1984 – August 1, 1986
Justice of the Maine Superior Court
In office
June 8, 1979 – 1984
Appointed byJoseph E. Brennan
Member of the Maine Senate
from the 13th district
In office
January 3, 1973 – January 5, 1977
Preceded byWilliam H. Clifford Jr.
Succeeded byThomas M. Mangan
Mayor of Lewiston
In office
January 1971 – January 1973
Preceded byJohn B. Beliveau
Succeeded byJohn C. Orestis
Member of the Lewiston Board of Aldermen
In office
January 1968 – January 1970
President: 1969
Personal details
BornRobert William Clifford
(1937-05-02) May 2, 1937 (age 87)
Lewiston, Maine, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseClementina
Children2
EducationBowdoin College (AB)
Boston College (JD)
University of Virginia (LLM)
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Years of service1962-1964
RankCaptain
UnitU.S. Seventh Army

Robert William Clifford (born May 2, 1937) is an American politician, lawyer and retired associate justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. He was appointed to this position on August 1, 1986 by then-governor Joseph Brennan. He was reappointed to seven-year terms in 1993, 2000, and 2007. He retired in 2009.

Education

Clifford grew up in Lewiston, Maine and graduated from Lewiston High School in 1955. He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1959, and earned a J.D. degree from Boston College Law School in 1962. He then served in the United States Army from 1962 to 1964 with the U.S. Seventh Army in Germany, attaining the rank of captain. In 1998, he earned an LLM in Judicial Process from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Career

Upon leaving the armed forces, Clifford practiced law in Lewiston-Auburn for fifteen years with the firm Clifford & Clifford. He was also an alderman and a two-time mayor in this city.

During his legislative tenure, he represented the senate on the Commission to Revise Maine's Probate Laws, which drafted Maine's current Probate Code. In 1978 and 1979 he was the Chairman of the Lewiston Charter Commission, which drafted Lewiston's current city charter.

On June 8, 1979, former Governor Joseph Brennan appointed Clifford to the state's Superior Court. Another appointment by Chief Justice Vincent L. McKusick made Clifford the first chief justice of the Maine Superior Court in 1984, a position he would hold until his appointment to the Supreme Judicial Court on August 1, 1986 by Governor Brennan.

Justice Clifford served as the Court's liaison to the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure, and to the Maine Assistance Program. He also served as an adviser to the Criminal Law Advisory Commission.

Prior to his judicial service, Clifford worked in the state's senate during the 106th and 107th Legislatures as a Democrat.

Personal life

His wife is Clementina whom he married in 1964 and they have two children.

References

  1. ^ Historic Lewiston - It's Government (1982)
  2. Mayors Hall of Fame, 1995-1996
  3. Judy Harrison (2009-05-30). "Justice leaving Maine supreme court". Bangor Daily News. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
  4. ^ Clifford, Robert oral history interview
  5. ^ Howard H. Dana, Jr. "The Supreme Judicial Court of the State of Maine, 1820 to 2009". Cleaves Law Library. Retrieved 2017-02-08.
  6. ^ "Supreme Court Justice Biographies". State of Maine Judicial Branch. Archived from the original on 2009-07-02. Retrieved 2017-02-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
Political offices
Preceded byJohn B. Beliveau Mayor of Lewiston, Maine
1971–1973 		Succeeded byJohn C. Orestis
Maine Senate
Preceded byWilliam H. Clifford Jr. Member of the Maine Senate from the 13th district
1973–1977 		Succeeded byThomas M. Mangan
Legal offices
Preceded byJoseph E. Brennan Associate Justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court
1986–2009 		Succeeded byJoseph Jabar
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