In Memoriam
Ashley Stewart Orr
Ashley Stewart Orr ’40, LLB ’47, a successful patent litigation attorney and ardent supporter of his alma mater since his graduation, died of a stroke July 9 in his San Diego-area home. He was 83.
In the mid-1970s, Orr served as president of the USC Alumni Association and on the USC Board of Trustees. Although he retired to San Diego Country Estates nearly 20 years ago, he remained involved with the San Diego Alumni Club and helped the Law School establish a chapter of its Legion Lex fundraising organization in San Diego.
“Throughout my term as dean, Ash remained a loyal supporter,” said Scott Bice, dean of the Law School from 1980 to 2000. “He was also a defender of the Law School as it moved from a regional training institution to a national class teaching and scholarship one. He shared the vision of what the Law School could become.”
Leaving his home of Pixley in the San Joaquin Valley of California in the 1930s, Orr enrolled at USC. He was in his first year of law school when World War II began; he interrupted his education with two tours of duty as an Army Air Corps bomber pilot in the Pacific before returning to complete his degree. He graduated in 1947 with a LLB and began working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, specializing in government condemnation cases. He later worked for a Pasadena law firm and then became a partner at Kendrick, Netter, Orr & Bennett in Los Angeles, specializing in patent litigation.
After moving to San Diego, Orr continued to work part time in law as a special master for U.S. District Court Judge Leland Nielsen. In one of his most prominent cases, he was appointed receiver of American Principals Holdings Inc. of Del Mar in 1984. In the early 1980s, APHI assembled tax-sheltered real estate, leasing, windmill and horse-racing partnerships for about 2,500 investors, many of whom lost most of what they invested. The Securities and Exchange Commission sued APHI and its managers, accusing the firm of fraud and co-mingling of investors’ funds between partnerships. The suit forced APHI, now defunct, into receivership.
Orr is survived by his wife, Nancy, his son, Ronald Orr ’72 – who also served as Alumni Association president and university trustee – and two grandchildren, Hailey and Justin. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Bice Endowment Fund in the USC Law School.
Ashley Stewart Orr
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Ashley Stewart Orr ’40, LLB ’47, a successful patent litigation attorney and ardent supporter of his alma mater since his graduation, died of a stroke July 9 in his San Diego-area home. He was 83.
In the mid-1970s, Orr served as president of the USC Alumni Association and on the USC Board of Trustees. Although he retired to San Diego Country Estates nearly 20 years ago, he remained involved with the San Diego Alumni Club and helped the Law School establish a chapter of its Legion Lex fundraising organization in San Diego.“Throughout my term as dean, Ash remained a loyal supporter,” said Scott Bice, dean of the Law School from 1980 to 2000. “He was also a defender of the Law School as it moved from a regional training institution to a national class teaching and scholarship one. He shared the vision of what the Law School could become.”Leaving his home of Pixley in the San Joaquin Valley of California in the 1930s, Orr enrolled at USC. He was in his first year of law school when World War II began; he interrupted his education with two tours of duty as an Army Air Corps bomber pilot in the Pacific before returning to complete his degree. He graduated in 1947 with a LLB and began working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, specializing in government condemnation cases. He later worked for a Pasadena law firm and then became a partner at Kendrick, Netter, Orr & Bennett in Los Angeles, specializing in patent litigation.
After moving to San Diego, Orr continued to work part time in law as a special master for U.S. District Court Judge Leland Nielsen. In one of his most prominent cases, he was appointed receiver of American Principals Holdings Inc. of Del Mar in 1984. In the early 1980s, APHI assembled tax-sheltered real estate, leasing, windmill and horse-racing partnerships for about 2,500 investors, many of whom lost most of what they invested. The Securities and Exchange Commission sued APHI and its managers, accusing the firm of fraud and co-mingling of investors’ funds between partnerships. The suit forced APHI, now defunct, into receivership.Orr is survived by his wife, Nancy, his son, Ronald Orr ’72 – who also served as Alumni Association president and university trustee – and two grandchildren, Hailey and Justin. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Bice Endowment Fund in the USC Law School.
– Neil Miller
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In Memoriam
Ashley Stewart Orr
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