Conrad Keefe Cyr (December 9, 1931 – July 28, 2016) was an American jurist who served as a

United States circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maine * District of Massachusetts * ...

from 1989 until his death. He was previously a United States District Judge of the

United States District Court for the District of Maine The U.S. District Court for the District of Maine (in case citations, D. Me.) is the U.S. district court for the state of Maine. The District of Maine was one of the original thirteen district courts established by the Judiciary Act of 178 ...

Early life and education

Cyr was born in

Limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. He attended

Limestone High School Limestone High School is a former high school in the town of Limestone, Maine. It changed to Limestone Community School and incorporated grades K-12 when nearby Loring Air Force Base closed and is now also home to the Maine School of Science and Mat ...

, graduating in 1949, then matriculated at the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...

. He received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree from Holy Cross in 1953 and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

in 1956. Cyr was in private practice of law in Limestone from 1956 to 1959, and in Bangor, Maine, from 1961 to 1962, serving in the interim as an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

in Bangor. He was a

referee in bankruptcy A Referee in Bankruptcy or Bankruptcy Referee was a federal official with quasi-judicial powers, appointed by a United States district court to administer bankruptcy proceedings, prior to 1979. The office was first created by the Bankruptcy Act o ...

for the District of Maine from 1961 to 1973.

Federal judicial service

District court service

Cyr served as a federal bankruptcy judge from 1973 to 1981, and was Chief Judge of the

Bankruptcy Appellate Panel A Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (abbreviated BAP) is authorized b28 U.S.C. § 158(b)to hear, with the consent of all parties, appeals from the decisions of the United States bankruptcy courts in their district that otherwise would be heard by distri ...

for the First Circuit from 1980 to 1981. On August 11, 1981, President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

nominated Cyr to the

vacated by

George J. Mitchell George John Mitchell Jr. (born August 20, 1933) is an American politician, diplomat, and lawyer. A leading member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States senator from Maine from 1980 to 1995, and as Senate Majority Leader from 198 ...

, who had resigned following his appointment as a United States Senator. Cyr was unanimously confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on September 25, 1981. He received his commission on September 28, 1981. Cyr served as Chief Judge of that District from 1983 to 1989. His service was terminated on November 20, 1989, due to his elevation to the court of appeals.

Appeals court service

On August 4, 1989, President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

nominated Cyr to serve on the First Circuit, in the seat vacated when Frank M. Coffin assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

. Cyr was confirmed by the Senate on October 24, 1989 and received his commission on November 20, 1989. Cyr assumed

on January 31, 1997 and continued to hear cases for several years afterwards. He was succeeded by fellow Maine resident

Kermit Lipez Kermit Victor Lipez (born August 18, 1941) is an American lawyer who serves as a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Education and early career Lipez received a Bachelor of Arts degree ...

Death

Cyr died on July 28, 2016, at the age of 84. He was remembered by Chief Judge Jeffrey R. Howard as "a wonderful friend. His dedication to justice and to his country has left an indelible mark on the legal system and on this nation". He is interred in Saint Louis Cemetery in his hometown of Limestone, Maine, alongside his parents, Louis and Kathleen, and sister, Marilyn, who preceded him in death by ten months.Marilyn A. Cyr
- ''

Bangor Daily News The ''Bangor Daily News'' is an American newspaper covering a large portion of central and eastern Maine, published six days per week in Bangor, Maine. The ''Bangor Daily News'' was founded on June 18, 1889; it merged with the ''Bangor Whig and ...

'', May 10, 2015"Conrad K. Cyr, former federal judge in Maine, dies at 84"
- ''

Portland Press Herald The ''Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram'' is a morning daily newspaper with a website that serves southern Maine and is focused on the greater metropolitan area around Portland, Maine, in the United States. Founded in 1862, its roots e ...

'', July 31, 2016

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cyr, Conrad Keefe 1931 births 2016 deaths Assistant United States Attorneys College of the Holy Cross alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Maine People from Limestone, Maine Lawyers from Bangor, Maine United States court of appeals judges appointed by George H. W. Bush United States district court judges appointed by Ronald Reagan 20th-century American judges Yale Law School alumni Judges of the United States bankruptcy courts Judges of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court