Robert “Buzz” Avery Barton ’52

Robert “Buzz” Avery Barton ’52 of Bedford, Massachusetts, passed away on May 20. Buzz was born on June 3, 1930, in Everett, Massachusetts. He graduated in 1948 from Boston Latin School and in 1952 from Dartmouth, having earned three varsity baseball letters. His major was sociology and he was a member of Sigma Chi. In 1955 he graduated first in his class from Boston University School of Law. He then joined the U.S. Marine Corps, serving as an officer and defense counsel to Marines charged in general court-martial proceedings. While stationed in San Francisco, Buzz met Norma Ann Green of Evanston, Illinois, a stewardess for TWA. They married in 1959; she predeceased him in 2015. In 1959 he was appointed an assistant district attorney for Middlesex County, Massachusetts, for four years and then joined the law office of F. Lee Bailey. He later joined the Boston firm of Inker & Oteri before starting a private practice. He served two terms as a selectman and five years as town moderator. He also spent many years as a trustee of Middlesex Community College. In 1978 Buzz was nominated for a Massachusetts Superior Court judgeship and served the Commonwealth for 22 years until mandatory retirement age. Buzz sat on and chaired the Massachusetts Judicial Conduct Commission. He taught trial practice at the New England School of Law for more than 30 years and received an honorary degree in 1992. He is survived by sons Stephen and Daniel, their spouses, and three grandchildren.