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To the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ community,

We are very sorry to report that George S. Isaacson ’70, an adjunct faculty member in government who taught courses at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ for nearly fifty years, died on Saturday, August 19, surrounded by members of his family. He was seventy-four years old.

George began his service to ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ and our students during the 1973–1974 academic year as a visiting lecturer in legal studies. He would later serve as a lecturer in government; as a visiting lecturer in the Senior Center Program; and as a visiting lecturer in education. Among the courses he taught were constitutional law, comparative constitutional law, education and law, and mental health law.

A 1973 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, George led a distinguished career as an attorney. Following his graduation from law school, and prior to entering private practice, he was law clerk to Maine Supreme Judicial Court Justice Thomas E. Delahanty. He was also past chairman of both the Maine Council of School Board Attorneys and the Maine Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Rules of Evidence and served as a member of the Federal Appellate Court Rules Committee. He wrote, lectured, and testified before congressional committees, on issues relating to the Commerce Clause of the US Constitution, and argued before state and federal appellate courts throughout the country, including twice before the US Supreme Court. He served as an associate at the Portland law firm of Jensen Baird Gardner Donovan and Henry before joining his fourth cousins Irving and Peter Isaacson at Brann and Isaacson in 1976, where was later senior partner. Regularly listed in “The Best Lawyers in America,” a peer-selected referral guide, George also served as general counsel to L.L. Bean.

George’s highly successful legal and teaching careers were complemented by extensive public service in Maine. Over the years, he was chair of the board of trustees of MaineHealth; a trustee of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network, Maine Medical Center, and the Brunswick International Music Festival; and a director of the Livermore Falls Trust Company. 

George is survived by his wife of forty-two years, Margaret; his daughters, Emily and Abigail ’08; his son, Nathan ’10; and seven grandchildren.

The Isaacson family invites members of the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ community to George’s funeral on Wednesday, August 23, at 10:00 a.m. in the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾ Chapel. Following a brief family graveside service and burial, the family will hold a reception at 12:00 p.m. in Main Lounge, Moulton Union.

In his five decades of teaching at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø±¬ÍøÕ¾, George mentored and inspired hundreds of students in the study of the law, and he will be missed in our classrooms and our community. I know you join us in sending condolences to his family and in our gratitude for George’s long and valuable service to the College.

Sincerely, 

Safa Zaki
President

Jen Scanlon
Senior Vice President and Dean for Academic Affairs