Vermont Business Magazine Governor Peter Shumlin has ordered flags statewide to fly at half-staff in honor of former Vermont Chief Justice Fred Allen, who passed away this weekend. The Governor has ordered flags lowered tomorrow at sunrise through Friday at sunset. The Governor issued the following statement.
“I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former Chief Justice Fred Allen. Since being appointed to the Court by Governor Snelling in 1984, Chief Allen served the State of Vermont with distinction. He provided firm leadership, critical stability, and a fresh perspective to our Supreme Court over his twelve years of service. ‘Fred,’ as his colleagues knew him, was known both for his strong work ethic and his deep sense of collegiality. He will be remembered as one of Vermont’s most respected jurists, outstanding trial lawyers, and as an accomplished Burlington son. My thoughts are with his family, friends, and former colleagues.”
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) said in a statement: “Marcelle and I were deeply saddened to hear of the passing of former Vermont Supreme Court Chief Justice Fred Allen. Fred was a World War II veteran, a noted trial lawyer and a guiding force on Vermont’s highest court for 12 years. He dedicated his life to public service and to our Green Mountain State and its people, and he leaves behind an enduring legacy. Our thoughts and prayers are with Karen and their two sons."
Middlebury College posted the following story (www.middlebury.edu):
Middlebury Mourns the Passing of Frederic Allen
April 12, 2016
MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – Frederic W. Allen of Shelburne, Vt., the former chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court who served on the Middlebury Board of Trustees from 1988 to 1998, passed away on April 9, 2016, at the age of 89.
The official portrait of Frederic Allen hangs in the Vermont Supreme Court building in Montpelier.
A respected jurist, attorney, trustee, husband, father, and World War II veteran, “Fred” Allen received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Middlebury College at the 2003 Commencement.
“In your 12 years as chief justice,” the honorary degree citation stated, “you restored the prestige of the Supreme Court among both public and bar in Vermont. Under your leadership the Court [ruled] that the quality of a public school student’s education should not depend on the property wealth of his or her town.”
With Allen as chief justice the court also determined that the Vermont state constitution could be used to provide protection for individual liberties even if the U.S. Supreme Court read the federal constitution in a more restricted way.
Born in Burlington in 1926, Allen earned a bachelor’s degree from Miami University (Ohio) and a degree in law from Boston University. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1944 to 1946, and entered the practice of law in Burlington in 1951.
As a Middlebury College trustee, he served on the conference and educational affairs committees, chaired the honorary degree committee, and from 1992-1993 chaired a special committee that revised the by-laws of the College.
William H. Kieffer III, a Middlebury trustee emeritus and member of the Class of 1964, served as a trustee with Allen. “Fred was perceptive, engaging, a source of legal guidance for the board and the administration, and he remained a legal resource for us for many years," Kieffer said. "He also served as a resource as we planned and celebrated the Bicentennial of the College in 2000, especially as we celebrated the relationship between the college and the State of Vermont.”
Another trustee emeritus Nancy Furlong ’75 said Allen “was a lifelong Vermonter and as such was very unassuming. He was a prestigious attorney and chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, but never took himself too seriously. His quiet way, quick wit, and self-deprecating humor was legendary. And he was greatly admired in the legal community for his sound and compassionate judgment.”
A member of the American, Vermont, and Chittenden County Bar Associations, Allen served as an alderman for the City of Burlington and as a trustee of the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Burlington and the Bennett C. Douglass School for students with special needs. He also received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Vermont Law School.
Justice Allen is survived by his wife, Karen McAndrew Esq.; children Kathryn, Martha, Zachariah ’03, and Spencer; three granddaughters; and six great grandchildren.
There will be a reception in memory of Frederic Allen on Friday, April 15, from 4 to 7 p.m. at All Souls Interfaith Gathering, 291 Bostwick Farms Road in Shelburne.