Joseph Michael McLaughlin

Joseph Michael McLaughlin was a United States circuit judge who served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1990 to 1998, and continued in senior status thereafter until his death in 2013. Before his elevation to the circuit court, he served as a United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York from 1981 to 1990. His career also included a decade as Dean of Fordham University School of Law and extensive scholarly work in the fields of evidence and civil procedure. Born in Brooklyn in 1933, McLaughlin spent much of his professional life in legal education and the federal judiciary in New York.

Early life and legal career

Joseph Michael McLaughlin was born on March 20, 1933, in Brooklyn, New York, where he was raised in a working-class family. He pursued his undergraduate education at Fordham College, earning an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1954. Following his college graduation, McLaughlin served in the United States Army Corps of Engineers, where he attained the rank of captain during his military service from 1955 to 1957.

After completing his military obligation, McLaughlin entered Fordham University School of Law, receiving his Bachelor of Laws degree in 1959. He began his legal career immediately thereafter, joining a private law firm in New York City that would later become known as Cahill Gordon & Reindel. His time in private practice lasted from 1959 to 1961, providing him with early exposure to the complexities of legal practice in one of the nation's major legal markets.

In 1961, McLaughlin transitioned from private practice to legal academia, joining the faculty at Fordham University School of Law in Manhattan as a law professor. During this period, he pursued advanced legal education, earning a Master of Laws degree from New York University School of Law in 1964. He remained on the Fordham faculty for a decade, teaching and developing expertise in areas that would later define much of his scholarly output.

McLaughlin's academic career reached a significant milestone in 1971 when he was appointed Dean of Fordham Law School. He served in this leadership role for ten years, guiding the institution through a period that saw significant developments in legal education. His tenure as dean concluded in 1981, the same year he entered federal judicial service. Throughout his time in academia and continuing even after he became a judge, McLaughlin maintained a strong commitment to legal scholarship and education, particularly in the areas of evidence and civil procedure.

Federal appellate service

McLaughlin's federal judicial career began at the district court level. On July 29, 1981, President Ronald Reagan, a Republican, nominated him to serve on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The nomination was for a newly created judgeship authorized by federal statute. The United States Senate confirmed McLaughlin on September 25, 1981, and he received his commission three days later, on September 28, 1981. He served as a district judge for nearly a decade, presiding over trials and other proceedings in the federal trial court covering Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and Long Island.

McLaughlin's service on the district court ended when he was elevated to the federal appellate bench. On July 10, 1990, President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, nominated McLaughlin to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The nomination was to fill a seat that had been vacated by Judge Lawrence Warren Pierce. The Senate confirmed McLaughlin on October 12, 1990, and he received his commission on October 17, 1990. His service on the district court formally terminated on October 18, 1990, upon his elevation to the circuit court.

As a circuit judge on the Second Circuit, McLaughlin joined one of the nation's most influential federal appellate courts, which hears appeals from federal district courts in New York, Connecticut, and Vermont. He served in active status on the circuit court until March 20, 1998, when he assumed senior status on his sixty-fifth birthday. Senior status is a form of semi-retirement that allows federal judges to continue hearing cases with a reduced caseload. McLaughlin remained active in this capacity, continuing to participate in the work of the Second Circuit for many years after taking senior status.

Throughout his time on the federal bench, both at the district and circuit levels, McLaughlin maintained his connection to legal education. Beginning in 1982, while still a district judge, he served as an adjunct professor of law at both St. John's University School of Law and Fordham University School of Law, teaching courses alongside his judicial duties.

Jurisprudence and legacy

While specific case names and holdings are not available in the reference materials, McLaughlin's contributions to American law extended well beyond his judicial opinions. He was a prolific legal scholar and author, producing numerous works that became standard references for practitioners and judges throughout New York and beyond. His scholarly output focused primarily on two major areas of law: evidence and civil procedure.

McLaughlin co-authored a significant casebook titled "Cases and Methods on New York Practice," which served as an educational resource for law students and practitioners seeking to understand the intricacies of New York procedural law. He also authored the Practice Commentaries for McKinney's New York CPLR, the annotated compilation of New York's Civil Practice Law and Rules. These commentaries provided authoritative guidance on the interpretation and application of New York's civil procedure statutes and were widely consulted by attorneys practicing in New York courts.

In the field of evidence law, McLaughlin authored a monograph on evidence published by the Practising Law Institute. More significantly, he served as editor-in-chief of two major treatises: "Federal Practice Guide," published by Matthew Bender, and "Weinstein's Evidence," also published by Matthew Bender. The latter work, in particular, is one of the most respected and frequently cited treatises on the Federal Rules of Evidence, used by judges and lawyers throughout the federal court system. His role as editor-in-chief of such influential publications demonstrated his standing as a leading authority in the field.

McLaughlin's dual career as both judge and scholar was relatively unusual and reflected his deep commitment to the development and exposition of procedural and evidentiary law. His academic work continued even during his active service on the federal bench, suggesting a sustained intellectual engagement with legal doctrine that complemented his judicial responsibilities.

Joseph Michael McLaughlin died on August 8, 2013, at a nursing home, with pneumonia listed as the cause of death. He was eighty years old and had served the federal judiciary for more than three decades. His legacy includes not only his judicial service on both the district and circuit courts but also his substantial contributions to legal literature and education, particularly through his widely used treatises and commentaries on evidence and civil procedure.