Judge Elfvin was born in the small upstate village of Montour Falls in Schuyler County, New York in 1917. He attended Cornell University and graduated with an electrical engineering degree in 1942. He graduated first in his class from the Georgetown Law Center in 1947 following service in the United States Navy as an electrical engineer in the Bureau of Ships during World War II, from 1943 to 1946.

Judge Elfvin clerked for Judge E. Barrett Prettyman of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1947 to 1948. After private practice in New York City at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, and for several firms in Buffalo, New York, he worked for three years as an Assistant United States Attorney from 1955 to 1958. He returned to private practice in Buffalo from 1958 to 1969 during which time he was a member of the Board of Supervisors for Erie County, and a member of the Buffalo Common Council, for which he was the minority leader in 1966. Judge Elfvin spent one year on the Supreme Court of New York in 1969 and often joked that the voters of the Eighth Judicial District returned him to private practice. He was appointed United States Attorney for the Western District of New York in 1972.

On December 9, 1974, Judge Elfvin was nominated by President Gerald Ford to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of New York vacated by Judge John Oliver Henderson. Judge Elfvin was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 20, 1974, and received his commission the following day. Judge Elfvin assumed senior status on July 1, 1987, and continued to accept a full caseload. He took inactive senior status on October 5, 2007, and passed away in 2009.

Judge Elfvin possessed a keen intellect and legal acumen; many who knew him remember his ready humor, and cheerful and gracious spirit. He often made himself the butt of his own jokes, which exhibited his understanding of the need for humility in his role as a District Judge. One example is a story he often told: One day after he had a good day on the bench and felt really good about himself, he went home and commented to his wife Peggy, “How many truly important people do you think there are?” Mrs. Elfvin responded, “One less than you, John.”

Judge Elfvin was known as a trial lawyer’s judge. His reputation required that attorneys be well-prepared when appearing before him because he was often more familiar with the underlying facts and law of a case than those who appeared before him. He never, however, raised his voice, lost his patience, or became irritated or annoyed at an attorney’s presentation. He treated everyone fairly, especially the pro se litigants who appeared before him. He understood and respected the attorneys’ and litigants’ critical roles in the judicial process.

Judge Elfvin was known for his dutiful, detailed, and constant note taking during the course of trial testimony or oral argument, creating a cursive record nearly equivalent of a verbatim transcript. His prose was beautifully flowing and concise. His law clerks fondly recall his repeated excursions into the library to check a citation, taking care that every articulation that emanated from his chambers would be correct, if not quick. The care to get things right in accordance with the law, as best as could be deduced, was the guiding principle in Judge Elfvin’s chambers.

Judge Elfvin was a fiercely independent jurist and never shied away from difficult issues. Shortly after the Sentencing Guidelines became effective, he refused to follow the proposed Guideline range, departed downwards because the Guideline range called for a 240-year sentence, and sentenced the defendant to three ten-year terms. He noted that the Guidelines were just that – guidelines – and were not mandatory. He was twice reversed because he failed to impose what he believed was an unreasonable 240-year Guideline sentence. A few years later in United States v. Booker, the Supreme Court held that the mandatory Guidelines system was unconstitutional, rendering them advisory only.

Judge Elfvin also ruled that a former star running back of the Buffalo Bills in the early 80’s, Joe Cribbs, was free to sign a contract with the Birmingham Stallions of the upstart United States Football League. This was not a popular decision in Buffalo and especially for a man who loved the Bills and had season tickets for decades. He often wore a Birmingham Stallions hat to Bills games. While he knew few people saw the joke in this, he surely did, and this is just another example of his sense of humor and humility.

Judge Elfvin’s personality, wit, intellect, and goodness kept the constellation of the court family around him focused on their work, happy to be of service, and feeling at home.

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This memorial was prepared with the assistance and contributions of Charles Carra and Rosalie Zavarella.