By John J. Duncan Jr.
duncanj@knoxfocus.com
On Thursday, we will hold the funeral in Knoxville of my uncle, Judge Joe D. Duncan. The next day, he will be buried at the Duncan Family Cemetery in Scott County, about two miles past Huntsville.
Uncle Joe lived a long, full life and passed away a little over six months past his 100th birthday. He had lived at his home in Suburban Hills until moving into assisted living a little less than two years ago, and his mind was good until the last couple of weeks.
I have heard and read that a man is fortunate to have one good male role model. I was blessed with three: my Dad, Uncle Joe and Zane Daniel, with whom I practiced law.
After my father died 36 years ago, Uncle Joe became almost like a second father to me. Even before Daddy died, I sometimes went to my uncle for advice.
Because of my name, I was a little worried about how the liberal professors at UT would treat me. When a political science professor made a verbal attack concerning my Dad on my first day there, it shook me up. I went to see Uncle Joe.
During my junior year at UT, I was the token conservative columnist for the Daily Beacon, the student newspaper. At the start of my senior year, some liberal student called and tried to get me to say all kinds of kooky things. Then he told me he thought I would be interested to know our conversation had been recorded.
I called Uncle Joe, and he told me not to worry about it but to never say anything over the phone I wouldn’t say in front of 10,000 people. Nothing ever came of it, because I hadn’t said anything kooky or controversial anyway.
During my undergraduate and law school years, I sometimes went to Uncle Joe’s court to watch cases and/or have lunch with him.
When I got ready to start practicing law, we had a long discussion in his office. He told me that if I worked hard, I could make a good living as a lawyer but I couldn’t get rich doing it. He said the only rich lawyers were ones who got into some kind of business investment, possibly because of their law practice.
Uncle Joe served as a state trial judge from 1966 to 1975. He then was elevated to the Court of Criminal Appeals.
To be appointed to the appellate court, you have to be recommended by a commission of private citizens. One lawyer who spoke in favor of his appointment told the commission: “Judge Duncan is the only judge I know who could sentence a man to life in prison and make him feel good about going.”
A few years later, when there was an opening in the trial court over which he had presided, I talked to him about whether I should give up my very lucrative law practice. He was very pleased when I decided to become a judge, and he was the one who swore me in.
Uncle Joe had a great sense of humor. Once, when we were going to lunch, I told him trial judges had it harder because they had to make instant decisions in trials held in crowded courtrooms while appeals court judges had law clerks to do research and took months to make decisions.
He said: “Jim, have you not stopped to think? Sometimes, you trial judges mess things up so bad, it takes us appeals court judges months to straighten it out.”
Another time, I told him that Rex McGee, who had once practiced law with Daddy and Uncle Joe, had been assigned to prosecute cases in my court. He told me: “You’ll find Rex to be a fine, sharp, intelligent lawyer. Everything he does well, he learned from me. Everything he messes up, he learned from your Dad.”
Sheeny White was the trial court bailiff for Uncle Joe and then a few years later for me. Once in my early years on the bench, I announced that I was taking a matter “under advisement” and would be in recess for 15 minutes.
As I walked off the bench, I heard Sheeny tell one of the other court officers, “He is not taking it under advisement, he is just going to call Uncle Joe.” Uncle Joe got a big kick out of that.
From all the many judicial conferences I went to, I found that Uncle Joe was one of the most respected judges in the state. He wrote the book on pattern jury instructions that all the other judges used.
When he passed away, two former state Supreme Court judges, Gary Wade and Sharon Lee, both Democrats, had very kind comments. Georgiana Vines wrote in the News-Sentinel. Justice Wade said Uncle Joe “was a father to us all,” meaning the other judges.
Uncle Joe was very proud of all his law clerks, especially Jim London and Dale Amburn, who went on to form what is still one of Knoxville’s leading law firms.
Judge Joe Duncan grew up as one of ten children on a small farm in Scott County. Coming from a very good but very poor family, he achieved greatness in an honorable profession. I was fortunate to have had him as such a big part of my life.
