Next year will be South Central District Judge Robert Wefald's 40th year in law. It also will be his last.

"I'm going to hang up my law license and leave my judge's robe behind," Wefald said on Friday.

Wefald, 67, hand-delivered a letter to state Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerald VandeWalle on Friday announcing he will not seek re-election and will retire when his second six-year term as judge ends on Dec. 31, 2010.

"Until then, please know that I will stay on the job working diligently right up to the last day of my term," Wefald wrote. "It is truly an honor and privilege to have been given the opportunity by the voters of the South Central Judicial District to serve them as one of their judges since January 1, 1999."

Wefald ranks being a judge as his best job, though he's liked all his jobs. His first was as a dishwasher at a camp at Lake Cormorant in Lake Park, Minn. He later was a camp counselor there, then served as waterfront director after his first year of law school. He said the job consisted of sitting by the water in a tank top, shorts and flip flops. He got a tan, his hair bleached out and he lost weight, since he didn't like the food.

"When I got back, Susan was so impressed that she agreed to marry me," Wefald said about his wife. He noted that no campers drowned during his stint.

Wefald plans to end his time as a judge by handling the Burleigh County master calendar during his last week, meaning he will handle the majority of the county's cases that week. Wefald said he handled that load his first week as a judge, so it seemed an appropriate way to go out.

Wefald was born in Excelsior, Minn., and graduated from Minot High School. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of North Dakota and his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School. He served as a Navy officer from 1964 to 1967 during the Vietnam War, then spent 24 years in the Naval Reserve, from which he retired as a captain in 1991. After law school, he served as a law clerk to the North Dakota Supreme Court, then went into private practice.

Wefald spent one term, from 1981 to 1984, as state attorney general and lost a bid for a second term.

"I never wanted to be a judge," he said. "It was never a goal of mine."

Wefald was elected to Judgeship 5, in the South Central Judicial District, in 1998. He began serving on Jan. 1, 1999. He said he was "totally and completely prepared" to be a judge from his time as a law clerk, a private practice attorney and the state attorney general. He has been surprised by the number of sex-related and domestic violence cases that come across his desk.

"It's been a real eye-opener to me the kinds of things that have gone on," he said.

The job he never wanted ended up being "simply the best job." He had heard judges prior to his time on the bench talk about how much work the job entailed and wondered why anyone would want it.

"I found when I became a judge, it wasn't all that bad," he said.

Wefald said he has never allowed work to pile up, which he learned while in private practice, where less work meant less money.

"I never let work sit around," he said. "I really make decisions quickly."

And once he makes the decisions, he is done with them. Two speeding cases stuck with him a little, because he believes the officers could have used more discretion, but no other cases have given him trouble.

"I've never agonized over a single decision I've made as a judge," he said. "I love the job, but I never look back."

He has tried to treat attorneys with patience and respect and says he appreciates his working relationships with the other judges in the district and the courthouse staff. Known for his wit from the bench, Wefald said there have been times when he should have thought before he spoke, but he doesn't believe in beating around the bush.

"I always believe in just telling people what I think," he said.

Unlike some retired judges, Wefald has no plans to serve as a surrogate judge in the absence of active judges. He said law would be difficult as a part-time occupation.

"I wouldn't want to fly with a part-time pilot," he said.

Instead, he hopes to travel more with his wife, Susan, who retired in 2008 after 16 years on the North Dakota Public Service Commission. He'll be able to see his granddaughter more often and continue to participate in community service, as he has with the annual Open Your Heart campaign and other public interests including the VFW and American Legion.

He also hopes to research North Dakota during World War I at the state Historical Society, which he hopes will culminate in an article or book on the subject. He would be open to sharing his knowledge of the judicial system to help other countries.

He assumes his wife will encourage him to walk their 18-month-old, 93.6-pound goldendoodle, named Sandy, more often once he retires.

The Supreme Court has 90 days to decide whether the judgeship Wefald will be vacating should remain in the South Central District or be transferred to another district. There currently are eight judges serving the 12 counties of the South Central District. Lawyers who wish to be on the ballot in the June 2010 election to take Wefald's spot cannot circulate nominating petitions until Jan. 11, 2010, and must be filed by 4 p.m. April 9, 2010.

"Based on my experience, I strongly urge that Judgeship No. 5 be continued in the South Central Judicial District," Wefald wrote in his letter to VandeWalle.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@bismarcktribune.com.)