Robert Carignan ... former Rochester District Court judge

ROCHESTER - Robert A. Carignan, 87, died on Thursday, December 30, 2017 at his home after a long illness with family by his side.
Robert was born in Rochester on July 9, 1930, the son of Albert and Gladys (Dallaire) Carignan and was a lifelong resident of Rochester. He was predeceased by his wife, Georgia (Drivas) Carignan.
He was a Past President of the Strafford County Bar Association and a member of the American Judges Association.
He was a graduate of St. Anselm College, and began his legal career after graduating from New England School of Law in 1954. He passed the New Hampshire Bar the same year, and became a sole practitioner in his hometown of Rochester, where he concentrated in tort work until 1978. He served as Strafford County Attorney from 1958-1968, as City Attorney for the City of Rochester, and former Counsel for the Rochester Housing Authority. He was appointed and served as Special Justice at the Rochester District Court from 1969 to 1985, and was appointed and served as Justice at the Rochester District Court from 1985 to 2000.
The then 70-year-old Carignan ended his career on July 7, 2000, not because he wanted to, but because he had met the mandatory age and had to. "If I had a choice, I would stay and continue to do what I'm doing," Carignan said. "I enjoy being a judge as much today as when I was appointed 31 years ago." And what he has enjoyed most, he said, is the variety of things he has heard, and the challenge of finding the truth.
Surviving members of the family include: his daughter, Stephanie Allinson and son-in-law, David Allinson of Milton, N.H.; two grandchildren, Rachael Allinson of Conn., and Alex Allinson of Boston, Mass.