Lycurgus Rayner Varser (August 13, 1878 – October 19, 1959)[1] was an associate justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, serving for nine months in 1925.[2]

Lycurgus R. Varser
Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
In office
March 16, 1925 – December 31, 1925
Appointed byAngus Wilton McLean
Preceded byWalter P. Stacy
Succeeded byWillis J. Brogden
Personal details
Born(1878-08-13)August 13, 1878
Gates County, North Carolina
DiedOctober 19, 1959(1959-10-19) (aged 81)
Charlotte, North Carolina
EducationWake Forest University (BA, LLB)
Signature

Biography

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Varser was born in Gates County, North Carolina, and attended Reynoldson Academy. He began attending Wake Forest University in 1895, earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1899 and his law degree in 1901. He was admitted to the bar in 1901. He took up the practice of law in Kinston, North Carolina. On June 29, 1904 he married Lily Ford Snead of Virginia.[3] He remained in Kinston until 1911 when he moved to Lumberton, North Carolina. There, he joined the law firm of Angus Wilton McLean and Dickson McLean.[2] By 1919, he was a director of the National Bank of Lumberton.[4] He was elected to the North Carolina Senate in 1920, and reelected in 1922,[5] serving on various committees including the agriculture and appropriations committees.[6] He became president of the North Carolina Bar Association in 1922, serving in that capacity until 1923.[7]

In 1925, Walter P. Stacy was appointed to be the chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, creating a vacancy at associate justice. Governor Angus McLean appointed Vargas, his former partner,[8] on March 16, 1925 to fill the vacancy. During his tenure, Vargas authored 65 opinions. He served as an associate justice for nine months, resigning the post on December 31, 1925.[2][9]

Following retirement from the court, he returned to Lumberton where he formed the law firm of Varser, Lawrence, Proctor and McIntyre, practicing law with that firm until this death.[2] He was appointed to The North Carolina State Board of Public Welfare in 1931,[10] but resigned from that position before the term expiration when he became a state bar examiner.[11] He was the chairman of the State Board of Law Examiners from 1933 until his death.[2]

Varser died in his sleep at his home in Charlotte, North Carolina, with no preceding illness.[12]

References

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  1. ^ "Judge Lycurgus R. Varser (Supreme Court of North Carolina)". CourtListener. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Presentation of the Portrait of LYCURGUS RAYNER VARSER" (PDF). North Carolina Judicial Branch. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  3. ^ "The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, June 30, 1904, Image 10". Library of Congress. June 30, 1904. p. 10. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  4. ^ "January 1919". Rand McNally Bankers Directory. January 1919. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  5. ^ "History of the Supreme Court of North Carolina from January 1, 1919, until January 1, 1969 - Page 2". North Carolina Digital Collections. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  6. ^ "Journal of the Senate of the General Assembly of the State of North Carolina at its session of ... [serial]". Internet Archive. Raleigh, N.C. : [The Senate]. 1859. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  7. ^ "Past Presidents - North Carolina Bar Association". North Carolina Bar Association. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  8. ^ "Stacy was an icon of Robeson County scholars". Robesonian. July 28, 2015. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  9. ^ "Varser Resigns Place on Bench of State Court; W. J. Brogden of Durham, Chosen as Successor to Supreme Court", Asheville Citizen-Times (December 21, 1925), p. 1.
  10. ^ "North Carolina historical review [1947 : January]". North Carolina Digital Collections. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  11. ^ "Biennial report of the State Board of Charities and Public Welfare to the General Assembly of North Carolina". Internet Archive. Raleigh : The Board. 1918. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  12. ^ "Judge Varser Dies At 81", The Charlotte News (October 20, 1959), p. 20.
Political offices
Preceded by Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
1925–1925
Succeeded by