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From: "D. Spencer Hines" <>
Subject: Re: Brice Clagett's Passing
Date: Tue, 2 Sep 2008 20:06:41 +0100


Here's Brice's Obituary from the Washington Post...

God Rest His Soul.

DSH
----------------------------------------------------------------

Obituaries

Brice Clagett; Specialized in International Disputes

A devoted genealogist, Brice McAdoo Clagett bought a home built by his
ancestors centuries ago.

By Joe Holley
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 16, 2008; Page B07

Brice McAdoo Clagett, 74, a Washington lawyer and historic
preservationist, died April 8 of cardiac arrest at George Washington
University Hospital.

An attorney for more than four decades with the law firm of Covington
and Burling, Mr. Clagett's specialties included public and private
international law, foreign claims, international arbitration,
international land and maritime boundaries, transportation and
environmental law and Middle Eastern law.

In 1960, former secretary of state Dean Acheson, a partner in the
firm, asked Mr. Clagett to serve as a juridical counselor with the
Cambodian delegation to the International Court of Justice at The
Hague. The case was a boundary dispute between Cambodia and Thailand.
Cambodia prevailed, and Acheson was made Prince of the Royal Order of
Cambodia, while Mr. Clagett was made Commander of the Order.

In 1975, he argued before the Supreme Court in United States v. Maine
on behalf of 11 of the 13 Atlantic coastal states that were
challenging on constitutional grounds the alleged federal ownership of
the Atlantic coastal shelf, which included oil-drilling rights.

Afterward, he received a letter from New Hampshire's deputy attorney
general. "I have yet to make my maiden argument in the Supreme Court,
and when I do I will think back to yours as a model," wrote David H.
Souter, who is now a Supreme Court justice.

IMPRESSIVE! -- DSH

Mr. Clagett often appeared before the Iran-United States Claims
Tribunal, established to settle claims between Iran and American
nationals after the Islamic Revolution of 1979. He also represented
numerous foreign governments in matters involving boundary disputes,
natural resources, expropriation, war damages and treaty claims.

Born in the District, Mr. Clagett graduated from St. Albans School in
1950. He graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University and
magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.

He was on the Harvard Law Review and the Board of Editors and won a
Rotary Fellowship to study for a year at the University of Allahabad,
India.

Mr. Clagett joined Covington and Burling as an associate in 1958 and
became a partner in 1967. He retired in 2002.

A lifelong advocate of historic and land preservation and
environmental protection, he served as chairman of the Maryland
Historical Trust from 1972 to 1978 and chairman of the Maryland
Environmental Trust from 1985 to 1989. He also was a member of the
Clagett Family Committee of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

In 1968, he and his first wife, Virginia Parker Clagett, bought Holly
Hill, a house in Friendship that was built by Mr. Clagett's ancestors
more than three centuries ago. He lavished great care on both the
house and gardens.

Passionate about history and genealogy, he compiled a 1,200-page book
about 20 generations of his family, including his maternal
grandfather, William Gibbs McAdoo, secretary of the Treasury in the
Wilson administration.

Yes, I had wondered about Brice's middle name. William Gibbs McAdoo
was also a U.S. Senator from California and the First Chairman of the
Federal Reserve Board. He was a major Presidential Candidate, as a
Democrat, in 1920 and 1924. -- DSH

"William Gibbs McAdoo and Eleanor were divorced in 1934. Two months
after the decree was finalized in July 1935, the 71-year old married
26-year-old nurse Doris Isabel Cross."

<G> -- DSH

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gibbs_McAdoo>;

"I wasn't born when I was born, and I won't die when I will die," he
said in 1975. "I am part of a continuum of the family."

ASTUTE. -- DSH

His first marriage ended in divorce.

Survivors include his wife of 20 years, Diana Sinkler Clagett of the
District; and two children from his first marriage, John Brice de
Treville Clagett of Friendship and Brooke Clagett of the District.

"D. Spencer Hines" <> wrote in message news:...

> That is indeed sad to hear.
>
> He was a fine gentleman, Harvard graduate and first-rate lawyer in a
> prominent Washington, D.C. firm.
>
> God Make His Face To Shine Upon Him...
>
> Do you have a link to an obituary?
>
> New Subject:
>
> What do you know about the famous Billy Phelps of Yale?
> --
> DSH
> Lux et Veritas et Libertas
> Vires et Honor
>
> "btphelps" <> wrote in message
> news:...
>
>> Brice Clagett passed away on April 8 of a heart attack. He was a
>> well-known researcher into the Clagett/Claggett ancestry with many
>> potential volumes left to publish. Has anyone learned anything
>> about the availability of his work now that he has passed on?
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Brian Phelps
>>
>> Phelps Family History in America
>> http://family.phelpsinc.com
>>
>> "The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything." --
>> Edward John Phelps
>>
>> Researching Phelps, Bartle, Beasley, Bremser, Christy, Claggett,
>> Diuguid, Klein, Loveland, Morgan, Pearce, Tolman, Sullivan


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