Proctor native Stauber retires from appeals court after 40-year legal career

Larry Stauber hasn't worked at the St. Louis County Courthouse in nearly nine years, but he remains a familiar and friendly face as he walks the halls.

Seemingly everyone stops to greet him, all of them met with the hearty smile, firm handshake and genial conversation that made him a popular figure during his three decades as an attorney at the Duluth courthouse.

Since 2008, Stauber has served as a judge on the Minnesota Court of Appeals - the lone representative from Northeastern Minnesota serving on either of the state's appellate courts.

It's a role that allows the Proctor native - who once pumped gas in West Duluth, stocked the shelves by night at Target and put himself through college by working full time at the U.S. Steel mill in Morgan Park - to play a hand in some of the state's biggest court cases, ranging from billion-dollar civil lawsuits to high-profile murder convictions.

Though the work requires him to spend considerable time in St. Paul, Stauber has made a point of returning to his home in Grand Lake Township every weekend and he remains close with many of his longtime Duluth colleagues.

Stauber, 70, earned praise as he prepares to retire Wednesday from the state's second-highest court after a 40-year legal career.

"Larry is kind of a lawyer's lawyer," said Mike Lien, his former Duluth law partner. "He's not pretentious. He advocated hard for his clients. He always got along with other attorneys and judges. He did what he could with the cards he was dealt, and that's all you can ask for."

Stauber, who this month reached the state's mandatory retirement age for judges, said he's been honored to serve in the role.

"Working as an appellate judge has been a unique opportunity to apply 30 years of legal experience - plus an additional nine years as an appellate judge - totally in the interests of justice for the good people of this state," he said.

Working in three-judge panels, the appeals court reviews all types of cases from trial courts, and issues decisions that are final in about 95 percent of all cases appealed from district courts across the state.

One of 19 judges on the error-correcting court, Stauber said his time has been consumed by reading legal briefs, conducting research, hearing oral arguments and authoring opinions - all the while preparing to hear the next case in the pipeline.

"My work at the court has been more difficult than I thought it would be," Stauber admitted. "Some cases were fairly easy, but those are offset by many difficult and complicated cases. It is a challenge, with long hours and weekends of work.

"But the work is also rewarding, as we are providing the justice necessary in a free society and careful oversight for the litigants who are confronted with difficult and unique circumstances," he said.

Career built in Duluth

Stauber, a 1965 Proctor High School graduate, earned his reputation advocating for clients in Duluth - though the law was not his original career path.

After graduating from the University of Minnesota Duluth with degrees in political science, geography and education, he started substitute teaching in area schools.

Stauber enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1970, explaining that he expected to be drafted otherwise. But with the Vietnam War winding down, he ended up serving out his tour in Europe.

Stauber graduated from Chicago-Kent College of Law in Chicago in 1977 and returned to Duluth, where he was offered office space and learned the craft from attorney A. Charles Olson.

For nearly 30 years, he operated a small general-practice law firm while also working on a part-time contract through the public defender's office.

"As an attorney, he was very personable," said Fred Friedman, who supervised Stauber as the longtime head of the public defender's office. "He got along quite well with clients. He was good at listening, good at explaining things. As a private practice attorney, he enjoyed defense work very much. It was his way of giving back to the community."

Stauber particularly excelled when representing juveniles and parents in child protection and delinquency cases, colleagues said.

Sixth Judicial District Judge Mark Munger, who knew Stauber as an attorney and later presided over cases that he argued, described Stauber as a "zealous advocate" for children and parents.

"Larry was always prepared, always had the best interests of his clients at heart," Munger said. "He was respectful of the court, which came in handy when he became a judge."

Lien, who is now a judicial referee in Hennepin County, got his first job out of law school at Stauber's firm.

He recalled being offered the job after a quick Friday night interview at a Duluth bar as Stauber raced to get to a UMD hockey game. They ended up working together for the next 25 years.

"He had an uncanny knack for making people feel comfortable around him," Lien said. "He was never fake. He had a very natural, homespun way about him that made people feel comfortable."

On the court

Stauber was appointed to the Court of Appeals bench by Gov. Tim Pawlenty in 2008.

Leaving Lien and Duluth behind was hard, he said, but he saw the opening on the court as a good opportunity for something new after 30 years.

"I was in the right place at the right time," he said.

Stauber said the work has proven difficult yet rewarding. The job involves reviewing lengthy prison sentences and major rulings in civil lawsuits. The Court of Appeals hears more than 2,000 cases a year - issuing the final opinion in about 95 percent of cases.

"The good part is that the three-judge panels produce good and fair results," he said. "Three heads are always better than one. And our work is critiqued not only by our peers through the circulation process, but also by staff attorney specialists in various areas of the law."

Friedman said Stauber has brought an important voice to St. Paul. Only four judges on the court are from outside the Twin Cities metro - which Friedman refers to as the "ring of knowledge."

Each of Minnesota's eight congressional districts gets a representative on the court. Gov. Mark Dayton has appointed Judge James Florey of Virginia to succeed Stauber in the 8th District.

"Minnesota is bigger than Hennepin County," Friedman said. "He has brought a statewide concept to the court."

Lien said Stauber's broad experience across various areas of the law has been an attribute for the appeals court.

"I'm sure it was a big change for him, but I think it was helpful for Larry and the court to have his background," he said. "He has a good understanding of court system, and I think he was able to bring a practical viewpoint of things."

Stauber lost his wife, Cindy, to cancer in September 2015. They have two adult daughters - Leah, an assistant St. Louis County attorney in Virginia, and Erin, who lives on the East Coast.

Stauber's friends and colleagues said they don't believe he's quite ready to slow down. It's the state's mandatory retirement age that is forcing him from the bench, though he said he'd be available to continue hearing cases on senior status as needed.

"He's a good guy," Friedman said. "I don't think he has any enemies."