Robert C. Erwin

Dec 29, 1934 -

Jan 24, 2020

It is with great sadness we announce the death of our father, former Alaska Supreme Court Justice Robert C. Erwin. Bob passed away on Jan. 24, 2020, of complications from congestive heart failure. He was 85 years old. He was surrounded by family and found peace in a life well-lived. Bob Erwin was born in Seward, Alaska, in 1934. An original Seahawk, he graduated from Seward High School in 1952. He attended the University of Colorado and received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1956. He attended law school at the University of Washington and earned an LLB in 1960. He was admitted to practice law in Washington in 1960, and in Alaska in 1961. Bob's lengthy legal career in Alaska began before statehood. In 1959, he went to work as a law clerk for the (new) State of Alaska's Department of Law in Juneau and became an Assistant Attorney General. He moved north when he was appointed District Attorney in Nome. In 1960, he met Monica Boucher in Nome. They were married in Nome in October 1961, and had seven children: Robert, William, Janet, Andrew, Kristina, Roberta and Michel. Bob was appointed District Attorney in Fairbanks in January 1962. He served in Fairbanks until March 1963, when he was appointed District Attorney in Anchorage. Bob centered his legal career for the next 57 years in Anchorage.

In April 1964, he entered private practice with the law firm of Hughes, Thorsness & Lowe. He remained there as a partner until his appointment to the Alaska Supreme Court, at age 35, by Governor Keith Miller in August 1970. After his retirement from the Supreme Court, Bob returned to private practice, where he handled a wide variety of cases and developed a successful appellate practice. As close as Bob could figure, he was the only attorney who had argued a case before every sitting Alaska Supreme Court Justice since statehood. He had his last Supreme Court oral argument on March 22, 2018, at the age of 83. He continued writing on legal issues right up to the end; the last of many articles he wrote for the Bar Rag was published in its October-December 2019 issue. A man of both principle and compassion, Bob believed that 30% of your law practice should be devoted to litigants who would not otherwise have access to justice, and his practice reflected this belief. Bob served as a board member on numerous nonprofit organizations, including: Beans Cafe, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Group, Programs for Infants and Children, and as Chairman of the Anchorage Mayor's Committee on Alcoholic Homeless, to name only a few. Bob's passion for the legal profession is reflected in three of his children who also developed careers in the legal field: his son Andrew, who is a state circuit court judge in Oregon; his daughter Tina, who is a paralegal in Oregon; and his daughter Bobbi, with whom he shared an office for many years. Bob was energized by the special bond he had with his grandchildren: Samantha (now in law school), Robert and Alexandra Erwin; Mackenzie, Will and Chance Sahr; and Benjamin, Daniel and Michael Birky. Even after leaving the bench, Bob continued to regularly "hold court," often with his attorney brother Bill Erwin and other longtime lawyers at Jackie's Place restaurant that allowed them to sit and discuss - and occasionally resolve - various legal issues and the political and societal woes of the day. He will be missed by many.

Bob is survived by his brother, William M. Erwin (Sheila); his sister, Jo Ann Kraly; his children, Janet (Dave) Birky, Andrew (Karen) Erwin, Kristina (Pat) Eaton, Roberta Erwin and Michel (Christine) Erwin; his grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. He will join in heaven his father and mother, William C. and Hazel Lucile Erwin; his brother, Jack A. Erwin; and sons, Robert and William.

Condolences may be sent to Roberta Erwin, 429 L Street, Anchorage, AK 99501; or rcerwin.palmiererwin@alaska.net. Services for Bob will be held at 4 p.m., on Friday, Feb. 21, 2020, at St. Patrick's Church, 2111 Muldoon Road in Anchorage. A reception will directly follow.