John T. Copenhaver Jr.
CHARLESTON – U.S. District Judge John T. Copenhaver Jr., who still was active as a senior status judge, died May 12. He was 100.
“It is with a heavy heart that I share the news that our dear friend and colleague, the Honorable John T. Copenhaver Jr. has passed away following an unparalleled life focused for seven decades on public service,” Chief U.S. District Judge Frank W. Volk said in a statement.
Copenhaver, who was appointed to the bench by President Gerald Ford, has been a cornerstone of the federal judiciary in West Virginia for more than six decades.
He had served continuously upon the federal bench from his appointment as referee in bankruptcy by Judge Benjamin F. Moore in 1958 until his death — a span of more than 68 years, more than any other federal judge in United States history.
“Since beginning his service in 1958, he has served this Court and the citizens of this state with unparalleled wisdom, integrity, and a profound dedication to the rule of law,” Volk said. “His impact on the Southern District of West Virginia and the judiciary is truly immeasurable.”
Described as a judge of measured temper, plain habit and unbending fidelity to the rule of law, Copenhaver was, in the phrase his colleagues most often used of him, a judge’s judge.
Volk said fellow District Judge Joseph Goodwin summed up Copenhaver best.
“I never saw another judge command a courtroom more completely – yet he never had to raise his voice,” Goodwin said. “Judge John Copenhaver was a wonderful friend and a brilliant, singularly respected federal judge.
“After trying many cases before him and serving with him as a colleague for over 30 years, I respected him so deeply that I never called him by his first name. Like everyone who knew him, I simply called him ‘Judge.’
“Even after turning 100 last September, his memory, acuity and devotion to his work never diminished. Through his work, his teaching, and his example, he advanced and preserved the rule of law and the ideals that sustain our system of justice”
Copenhaver was born September 29, 1925, in Charleston. His father was the mayor of Charleston at the time. He was educated in the Charleston schools and at the Kentucky Military Institute, from which he graduated in 1942. He entered the service before he entered adulthood, assigned to the America Division of the United States Army and shipped first to New Caledonia and thereafter to the Philippines and then Japan. He was honorably discharged in 1946 and returned to West Virginia.
He entered West Virginia University in Morgantown, where he earned a degree in 1947. He then went to the WVU College of Law, earning his degree in 1950.
Copenhaver served as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge Benjamin Franklin Moore. He soon was appointed by Moore to the office of referee in bankruptcy for the Southern District. In 1973, that title was changed to U.S. Bankruptcy Judge.
In 1976, Copenhaver was nominated by Ford for the federal bench. He was confirmed days later.
Arrangements are pending.
