Hatfield was admitted to the Montana bar that same year, commencing his practice in Great Falls.[2] He was chief deputy county attorney for Cascade County from 1959 to 1960 and served as judge of the Eighth Judicial District from 1961 to 1976. He was elected Chief Justice of the Montana Supreme Court in the 1976 general election, defeating long-time Associate Justice Wesley Castles with a vote of 199,536 (67.5%) to 95,947 (32.5%), taking office in January 1977.
United States Senateedit
On January 22, 1978, Montana Governor Thomas Lee Judge appointed Hatfield to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Lee Metcalf for the term ending January 3, 1979. He served from January 22, 1978, until his resignation December 14, 1978. He was defeated for nomination in the Democratic primary in June 1978 by Congressman Max Baucus with Baucus getting 87,085 votes (65.3%) to Hatfield's 25,789 (19.3%). There were two other minor candidates in the race. After that nominating defeat, Hatfield remained in the Senate until his own resignation when the election of his successor, Baucus, was officially certified after the general election in November 1978. Max Baucus praised his former primary opponent for being "one of the most decent and thoughtful people I've had the privilege of knowing."[3]
Federal judicial serviceedit
On March 15, 1979, Hatfield was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Montana vacated by Judge Russell Evans Smith. Hatfield was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 9, 1979, and received his commission the following day. He served as Chief Judge from 1990 to 1996, assuming senior status on February 9, 1996, and continuing to serve until the end of his life.[2] Hatfield was a resident of Great Falls from 1979 until his death on July 3, 2000.[4] He is buried in Riverside Memorial Park in Spokane, Washington.[5]
^Molloy, Donald W. "U.S. District Court, District of Montana Judge Paul G. Hatfield 'He Was the Same Person in Court, at Home or at the Racetrack'", Duke Law: Center for Judicial Studies, November 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
paul, hatfield, paul, gerhart, hatfield, april, 1928, july, 2000, american, attorney, politician, jurist, served, briefly, united, states, senator, from, montana, 1978, then, united, states, district, judge, united, states, district, court, district, montana, . Paul Gerhart Hatfield April 29 1928 July 3 2000 was an American attorney politician and jurist He served briefly as United States Senator from Montana in 1978 and then as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana Paul G HatfieldSenior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of MontanaIn office February 9 1996 July 3 2000Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of MontanaIn office 1990 1996Preceded byJames F BattinSucceeded byJack D ShanstromJudge of the United States District Court for the District of MontanaIn office May 10 1979 February 9 1996Appointed byJimmy CarterPreceded byRussell Evans SmithSucceeded byDonald W MolloyUnited States Senatorfrom MontanaIn office January 22 1978 December 14 1978Appointed byThomas Lee JudgePreceded byLee MetcalfSucceeded byMax BaucusPersonal detailsBornPaul Gerhart Hatfield 1928 04 29 April 29 1928Great Falls Montana U S DiedJuly 3 2000 2000 07 03 aged 72 Great Falls Montana U S Political partyDemocraticEducationUniversity of Montana LLB Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career 2 1 United States Senate 2 2 Federal judicial service 3 Death 4 References 5 External linksEarly life and education editBorn in Great Falls Montana Hatfield attended the College of Great Falls now University of Great Falls He served in the United States Army Signal Corps with the 181st Signal Depot Company from 1951 to 1953 including in Korea during the Korean War from 1952 to 1953 1 He received a Bachelor of Laws from the Alexander Blewett III School of Law at the University of Montana in Missoula in 1955 Career editHatfield was admitted to the Montana bar that same year commencing his practice in Great Falls 2 He was chief deputy county attorney for Cascade County from 1959 to 1960 and served as judge of the Eighth Judicial District from 1961 to 1976 He was elected Chief Justice of the Montana Supreme Court in the 1976 general election defeating long time Associate Justice Wesley Castles with a vote of 199 536 67 5 to 95 947 32 5 taking office in January 1977 United States Senate edit On January 22 1978 Montana Governor Thomas Lee Judge appointed Hatfield to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Lee Metcalf for the term ending January 3 1979 He served from January 22 1978 until his resignation December 14 1978 He was defeated for nomination in the Democratic primary in June 1978 by Congressman Max Baucus with Baucus getting 87 085 votes 65 3 to Hatfield s 25 789 19 3 There were two other minor candidates in the race After that nominating defeat Hatfield remained in the Senate until his own resignation when the election of his successor Baucus was officially certified after the general election in November 1978 Max Baucus praised his former primary opponent for being one of the most decent and thoughtful people I ve had the privilege of knowing 3 Federal judicial service edit On March 15 1979 Hatfield was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Montana vacated by Judge Russell Evans Smith Hatfield was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 9 1979 and received his commission the following day He served as Chief Judge from 1990 to 1996 assuming senior status on February 9 1996 and continuing to serve until the end of his life 2 Hatfield was a resident of Great Falls from 1979 until his death on July 3 2000 4 He is buried in Riverside Memorial Park in Spokane Washington 5 Death editHatfield died in Great Falls Montana in July 2000 The Paul G Hatfield Courthouse in Helena Montana is named in his honor References edit Molloy Donald W U S District Court District of Montana Judge Paul G Hatfield He Was the Same Person in Court at Home or at the Racetrack Duke Law Center for Judicial Studies November 2014 Retrieved 13 June 2019 a b Paul Gerhart Hatfield at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges a publication of the Federal Judicial Center Saxon Wolfgang July 5 2000 Paul Hatfield 72 Whose Vote On Panama Canal Was Decisive The New York Times Retrieved October 13 2014 Archives West Guide to the Paul G Hatfield Papers 1977 2000 nwda db wsulibs wsu edu Kestenbaum Lawrence The Political Graveyard Index to Politicians Hatfield politicalgraveyard com External links editUnited States Congress Paul G Hatfield id H000344 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Paul Gerhart Hatfield at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges a publication of the Federal Judicial Center U S Senate Preceded byLee Metcalf U S senator Class 2 from Montana1978 Served alongside John Melcher Succeeded byMax Baucus Legal offices Preceded byJames T Harrison Chief Justice of the Montana Supreme Court1977 1978 Succeeded byFrank I Haswell Preceded byRussell Evans Smith Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana1979 1996 Succeeded byDonald W Molloy Preceded byJames F Battin Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana1990 1996 Succeeded byJack D Shanstrom Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Paul G Hatfield amp oldid 1190442122, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
