By Debra Walsh
Staff Writer
A prominent attorney and life-long resident of Caribou was remembered this week as a gentleman, counselor and one of the finest trial lawyers around.
Funeral services were held Monday for Richard Nelson Solman, who died at the age of 74 on Nov. 14 at his home in Caribou from complications from cancer. He was a partner in the local law firm of Solman and Hunter. “There are very few lawyers who have been as fortunate as I have been over the past 30 years to have had such a gifted lawyer and genuinely nice man as their mentor, law partner and friend,” said Justice E. Allen Hunter of the Aroostook County Superior Court.
Prior to his appointment on the bench, Hunter was a partner in the Caribou law firm that bore both his and Solman’s name
“The legal profession is greatly diminished by his passing,” Hunter said in a prepared statement.
Hundreds attended the funeral at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Caribou and the calling hours at Lancaster-Morgan Funeral home the evening before.
Solman was born in Caribou in 1933 and graduated from Caribou Schools. He enrolled in a combined undergraduate and graduate program at Boston University to earn his bachelor’s and law degrees in 1955.
At the time of his admittance into the bar at age 22, he was the youngest member licensed to practice law in Maine and Massachusetts. He was admitted to the U.S. District Court in 1957.
Solman practiced law in Caribou until 2006. At first he worked with his uncle, David Solman and then with law partners, the late Robert Page, E. Allen Hunter and his son Richard D. Solman, who continues the practice.
Members of the local judiciary remembered Solman this week during interviews.
“I had the pleasure of being in practice at the same time (as Solman) and also being on the bench” when Solman practiced law, said Judge Ronald Daigle, of the Maine District Courts in Caribou and Fort Kent.
Daigle said that Solman was a “very, very capable” attorney.
‘’Even after I came on the bench, I was not hesitant to come to him for counsel,” said Daigle referring to questions of law. “He will be greatly missed.”
Retired Justice Paul T. Pierson, formerly of Caribou, echoes the recurring theme of Solman being a gentleman.
“He was one of the finest trial lawyers around,” said Pierson from his home in Bucksport. “He was an ethical and honest attorney, a real gentleman and a pleasure to work with.”
A former Caribou neighbor, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, remembered Solman as a “wonderful, warm person and a terrific attorney,” in a prepared statement.
“Dick Solman was a cherished friend any my neighbor when I was growing up in Caribou,” said Collins, who also offered condolences to his family in her statement.
A “true Caribou icon,” Solman contributed substantially to the development of Cary Medical Center, said Kris Doody, CMC chief executive officer.
“(He) contributed substantially to the fabric of our Caribou community through his many civic activities and community leadership,” Doody said in a statement. “Over the years, he was a great friend of Cary Medical Center, who understood the value of the hospital both in terms of service and economic impact.”
Doody said Solman was close to several members of the medical staff and was a “valued professional” who will be missed.
Solman served in the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957, instructing pilots on the Link trainer at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He served afterwards as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserves, where he was commissioned as a first lieutenant in 1957 and assigned duty in the Judge Advocates General Corps. until his honorable discharge in 1960.
During his 50 years of practicing law, Solman was a member of Aroostook County Bar Association, serving as its president from 1982 to 1983; the Maine State Bar Association; the Association of Trial Lawyers of America; and Maine Trial Lawyers Association, serving as its vice president in 1975 and president, 1976 to 1978.
In 1973, Solman was one of only 500 active American attorneys elected as a Fellow of International Academy of Trial Lawyers. In 1975, he was named a Fellow in American College of Trial Lawyers. From 1975 to 1978, Solman was a member of Judicial Selection Committee under former Maine Gov. James B. Longley.
Solman also served as a member of the governor’s advisory committee on court administration and was one of the original members of the Board of Overseers of the Bar.
Solman was active in his community as well. He served on the advisory board and later director of Northern National Bank and Casco Northern Bank and was a trustee of the Caribou Hospital District in 1966.
He also was a director of Aroostook Health Services from 1970 to 1973. He was active for several years in both the Rotary Club and Knights of Columbus.
Solman was remembered as an avid sportsman, enjoying golf and fishing with his many friends from Aroostook County to Florida. He also held a pilot’s license for more than 40 years, earning his instrument rating and flying his own airplanes.
Solman leaves behind his wife, Susan Bent Solman; his three children, Richard Solman of Caribou, Gregory Solman of Lake Gregory, Calif., and Leslie Chiaverini, her husband, John and a grandson, Michael Chiaverini, of Belmont, Calif.; the mother of his three children, Dione Solman McCarthy of Sunnyvale, Calif.; his brother, Robert L. Solman and his wife, Judy; and his sister, Carolyn S. Thomas; his stepchildren, Julie Rogers and her husband, Michael, of Warren; and Aaron Ayer and his wife, Jennifer, step grandchildren, Lily Rogers and Simon Ayer.
