Duke Wellington Dunbar
| Publication year | 1990 |
| Pages | 1282 |
| Citation | Vol. 19 No. 7 Pg. 1282 |
1990, July, Pg. 1282. DUKE WELLINGTON DUNBAR
The Hon. John P. Moore, Denver, is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He worked for Duke Dunbar for many years as an assistant and deputy and succeeded Mr. Dunbar as Attorney General.
Attorney General Duke Dunbar is not remembered as an artful practitioner of trial tactics, nor does anyone recall that he was a particularly eloquent appellate advocate. He was not a scholar who dazzled judges and opponents alike with his capacity and for intricate legal theory. He is remembered with reverence, however, because he was a decent, honorable man who put justice and the law before any other consideration. He is honored because he demanded of those who associated with him the highest standards of integrity and adherence to law. His memory is carried in the hearts of many because he taught them what it means to be a lawyer.
For those who worked for him in the Attorney General's office, Duke was more than a boss. He was a father figure, mentor, inspiration and friend. All were and are still proud to be known as "Duke's Boys," even though the gender base for the appellation is not totally accurate. (In point of fact, former Colorado Court of Appeals Chief Judge Aurel Kelly is fondly regarded as one of those "boys," even though there never has been a doubt about her femininity.) Those who worked for him were a proud bunch who would not have hesitated to walk through a wall if they perceived such an effort to have been his desire.
This was not due to some artificial quality tagged "charisma" that so many present-day politicians seek. Duke did not generate a Madison Avenue-created aura of personal magnetism. Although his political prowess was almost without peer, he was neither a physically imposing nor emotionally inspiring public person. What, then, was there about this man that provoked such loyalty and admiration? It was that which sets so few apart from so many: character.
Duke's strength was his inherent knowledge of justice and right. Fortunately for many, he also had the ability to pass on to his assistants those qualities that set him apart from others. However, he didn't lecture about integrity; he taught by example. He didn't talk about straying from legal principles---he simply wouldn't allow it.(fn1)
He never had to tell an assistant more than once that a mistake had been made. While he supported an errant lawyer in public, in private, the law was laid down in very...
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