Nicholas John Spaeth (January 27, 1950 – March 16, 2014) was the 27th Attorney General of North Dakota, serving from 1985 to 1992. He lost the 1992 North Dakota governor's race to Republican Ed Schafer.

Nicholas Spaeth
27th Attorney General of North Dakota
In office
January 1, 1985 – December 15, 1992
GovernorGeorge Sinner
Preceded byRobert Wefald
Succeeded byHeidi Heitkamp
Personal details
Born(1950-01-27)January 27, 1950
Mahnomen, Minnesota, U.S.
DiedMarch 16, 2014(2014-03-16) (aged 64)
Fargo, North Dakota, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationStanford University (BA, JD)
New College, Oxford

Born in Mahnomen, Minnesota, Spaeth grew up in Valley City, Fargo, and Bismarck in North Dakota. He went to college at Stanford University, where he graduated with honors, and won a Rhodes Scholarship to New College, Oxford. After Oxford, he went to Stanford Law School, where he was managing editor of the law review.[1][2]

After graduation, he clerked for United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit Judge Myron Bright and then for Supreme Court Justice Byron White.[3][4]

In the November 1992 election for governor of North Dakota, Spaeth lost to Schafer, 58% to 41%. In 2004, Spaeth joined H&R Block, Inc. in 2004, as a senior vice president and chief legal officer.[5] He resigned in 2007 and joined the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) as executive vice-president, general counsel and chief risk officer.[6]

Death

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Spaeth was found dead in his apartment in Fargo, North Dakota on March 16, 2014. He was 64 years old.[7]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Michael Kinsley (March 24, 2011). "Too Old to Get Hired, Too Young to Retire". Washington Monthly. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  2. ^ North Dakota Supreme Court News-Nicholas John Spaeth
  3. ^ Ellen Segal Huvelle (March 13, 2012). "Memorandum Opinion, Nicholas Spaeth, Plaintiff, v. Georgetown University, Defendant, Civil Action No. 11-1376 (ESH), United States District Court, District of Columbia". Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  4. ^ Nicholas J. Spaeth profile Archived 2010-12-05 at the Wayback Machine, University of Missouri School of Law; accessed March 18, 2014.
  5. ^ "H&R Block's Newsroom - Source of Company and Tax News".
  6. ^ 'Nicholas Spaeth, former ND attorney general, found bead in Fargo,' Grand Forks Herald, Patrick Springer, May 17. 2014
  7. ^ Nicholas Spaeth, former North Dakota Attorney General, found dead in Fargo over the weekend, wday.com; accessed March 18, 2014.
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney General of North Dakota
1985–1992
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by
Alice Olson
Democratic nominee for Attorney General of North Dakota
1984, 1988
Succeeded by
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of North Dakota
1992
Succeeded by