Santa Barbara Lawyer - Santa Barbara County Bar Association

Judge J. William McLafferty
June 14, 1939 – January 15, 2010
The Santa Barbara legal community and
particularly his colleagues on the bench
and courthouse staff were shocked and
profoundly saddened by the news of Judge Bill
McLafferty’s sudden passing on Friday, January
15, 2010, at Cottage Hospital. Although Bill had
been hospitalized for more than a month and
had undergone serious surgery related to longstanding
pulmonary issues, he had appeared to
be rebounding and we expected soon to see him
back at his post in Department Five. The reality
of his absence is slowly sinking in.
His loss will be particularly felt in the South
Coast Civil Division where he has long been
the Supervising Judge, both before and after his
term as Presiding Judge from 2007 through 2008.
Bill strengthened the CADRe program and pio-
neered the Case Management Alternative Dispute
Resolution Early Settlement Session (CMADRESS)
into a highly effective early settlement vehicle using
civic minded and specially trained attorneys under
Court supervision to resolve civil cases early at great
savings of Court and litigant resources.
Bill managed to bridge the gulf of isolation that
can separate judges from the communities they
serve by his active and often humorous participation
in the William L. Gordon Inn of Court and a
wide range of other community organizations. Although
he maintained discipline in the courtroom,
a warm heart of compassion, fostered perhaps by
his own humble beginnings, was never far below
the surface. He will be greatly missed.
6 Santa Barbara Lawyer
- Judge James W. Brown
A full memorial spread on Judge McLafferty will be included in the March 2010
issue of Santa Barbara Lawyer. Please refer to the Editor’s Message on page 5 to see
how you can contribute to the commemoration of Judge McLafferty’s life.