Procter R. Hug Jr. 1931-2019

Procter R. Hug Jr. served as chief judge of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, pushing back efforts to break up the multi-state court during his term from 1996 to 2000. He died Thursday at age 88.

Speaking about his legacy Monday, 9th Circuit Chief Judge Sidney R. Thomas said Hug was always able to calm turbulent waters.

"Chief Judge Hug's warmth, optimism, vision, intelligence, eloquence, quiet perseverance, and sense of humor made him one of the most effective chief judges in the history of the circuit," Thomas said. "He was a man of unquestioned integrity and high character. He promoted collegiality among judges and always calmed any turbulent waters with gentle humor and grace. He was a great friend, and it was an honor to serve with him."

In a tribute to him delivered in 2002, former Democratic Senator Harry Reid of Nevada described Hug as "the most effective advocate and defender that the 9th Circuit has known in Washington. He can truly be described as the man who saved the 9th Circuit.

"The fact that the 9th Circuit continues to exist as we have known it is attributable to Chief Judge Hug's tireless work and persuasive abilities," Reid said.

Reid said Hug successfully challenged the notion that the 9th Circuit needed to be split during a time when it was receiving a lot of criticism that it was politically biased. Hug appeared before members of the House and Senate panels and committees of the U.S. Supreme Court that were studying the size and makeup of the circuit court.

"In these many public appearances, Judge Hug proved himself capable of confounding the circuit's critics," Reid wrote.

In a 2010 Daily Journal interview about what it felt like to hand the circuit helm to Judge Mary M. Schroeder of Phoenix in 2000, Hug said, "I enjoyed being chief, but it was good to pass it on. Now, the nice thing about senior status is that I have half the case load. I still go to work every day, but I'm not as pressed."

Schroeder said at a 2012 event in Hug's honor they had developed programs together to implement during his chief judgeship and then hers.

"Proc's legacy, to the judiciary and to the country, is huge," Schroeder said in 2012. "I am proud to have him as my colleague and friend."

Hug, from Reno, Nevada, was among the 15-member contingent of liberal judges, including Stephen R. Reinhardt, Harry Pregerson and Betty Binns Fletcher, whom President Jimmy Carter placed on the 9th Circuit in the 1970s.

Before being appointed in 1977, Hug was a Nevada deputy attorney general from 1972 to 1976. Previously he was a partner at Woodburn Wedge Blakey Folsom & Hug and before that a partner at Springer McKissick & Hug.

Hug's significant opinions include a landmark abortion ruling in National Abortion Federation v. Operation Rescue, 8 F.3rd 680 (1993), in which Hug reversed a Los Angeles trial judge and revived a class action, holding that charges of conspiracy to block access to abortion clinics were actionable under federal law.

A former clerk, Michael W. Large, now a deputy district attorney in Washoe County, Nevada said his time with Hug in 2002-2003 was "the best job I ever had." Large especially appreciated Hug's habit of holding daily conferences with his clerks to discuss cases, current events and legal news. "He's extremely well-respected as a thorough, intellectual judge," Large said in 2010.

A former colleague, Circuit Judge Stephen S. Trott of Boise, Idaho, also had nothing but praise for Hug back in 2010.

"Procter Hug is really everybody's model for an ideal federal judge," Trott said. "He has a phenomenal knowledge of the law, he has wisdom, judgment and temperament, he's respected by everybody and he's a terrific guy. He was a great chief judge and he made an impact on the law of the 9th Circuit during his long tenure."

Hug's death came months after his wife Barbara's. They were high school sweethearts and married for 65 years. He is survived by three children, Cheryl Hug English (Harry), Procter Hug (Sue), Elyse Hug Pasha (George), eight grandchildren, Christopher English (Karah), Ashley English, Alysha English, Procter Hug IV (Julie), Julianne Hug, Cherylann Pasha (Brendan), Savannah Pasha, Mary Kate Pasha, and four great grandchildren Jackson Procter Hug, Colin English, Chloe Hug, and Charlotte Hug, according to the Reno Gazette Journal.

Visitation hours are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 1, 2019 from 5 to 7 p.m. with recitation of the rosary at 7 p.m. at Walton Funeral Home, 875 W. 2nd Street, Reno. The funeral mass is scheduled for Nov. 2 at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of the Snows parish, with a celebration of life to follow.