John F. McCuskey

John F. McCuskey
Justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
In office Jan. 12, 1998 – Dec. 31, 1998
Preceded by	Thomas McHugh
Succeeded by	Warren McGraw
Member of the West Virginia House of Delegates
In office 1973–1977
Preceded by	Thomas McHugh
Succeeded by	Warren McGraw
Personal details
Born	(1947-11-07) November 7, 1947 Harrison County, West Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Alma mater	West Virginia Wesleyan College (BA) West Virginia University College of Law (JD)

John F. McCuskey (born November 7, 1947) is West Virginia lawyer and politician who served for brief periods in the West Virginia State Legislature and on the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia.

Early life, education, and political career

Born and raised in Clarksburg, West Virginia, McCuskey received a B.A. in mathematics from West Virginia Wesleyan College, and a B.S.E.E. from the University of Pennsylvania. He was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates in 1972, while he was still a student at the West Virginia University College of Law, sitting out one year of law school to pursue the office. He received his J.D. degree from WVU in 1973. As a legislator, McCuskey refused to accept the daily allowance offered to legislators during a special session of the legislature, on the basis that the work of the legislature should have been completed during its regular session.

McCuskey remained in the legislature for four years, during which time he served on committees addressing the state judiciary, agriculture and natural resources, constitutional revision, and state parks, and sponsored legislation to reconfigure the state's justice of the peace system. In 1976, he was the Republican candidate for West Virginia's 1st congressional district, running against incumbent Democrat Bob Mollohan.

Legal career

McCuskey served as West Virginia's Commissioner of Finance and Administration from 1985 to 1988, and later became a partner in the firm of Campbell Woods Bagley in Charleston. During this time, his trial practice concentrated on product liability and insurance defense. McCuskey was appointed by Republican Governor Cecil H. Underwood to fill a vacancy on the state supreme court caused by the retirement of Justice Thomas McHugh on January 12, 1998. McCuskey ran for the remainder of the expired term, and during the course of the campaign refused support from a political action committee fund set up by direct marketing mogul Benjamin Suarez, who was feuding with West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw, the brother of McCuskey's opponent. On November 3, 1998, McCuskey was defeated by Warren McGraw in the election to fill the remainder of Justice McHugh's term, which expired on December 31, 2004. McCuskey served until December 31, 1998. During his time on the court, he authored 10 majority opinions and numerous concurrences and dissents.

In 1999, after his service on the Supreme Court, McCuskey co-founded Shuman, McCuskey & Slicer, PLLC.

Personal

McCuskey has two children. His son JB McCuskey was elected West Virginia State Auditor in 2016. His daughter Liz is a tenured professor of law at the University of Massachusetts and is a preeminent national scholar in health law.

Elections

1998 Supreme Court of Appeals Election

Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John F. McCuskey (incumbent)	47,923	65.9%
	Republican	John Yoder	24,843	34.1%
Total votes			72,766	100.0%
General election
	Democratic	Warren McGraw	194,951	53.7%
	Republican	John F. McCuskey (incumbent)	167,907	46.3%
Total votes			362,858	100.0%
	Democratic gain from Republican