Bernard Edward Borene ’70, Longtime Minnesota Judge, Dies at 74

Bernard Edward Borene ’70, who served for 26 years as a district court judge in Minnesota’s 3rd Judicial District, passed away Nov. 26 in Portland, Oregon, at the age of 74.

Born and raised in Montevideo, Minnesota, Borene did his undergraduate work at the University of Minnesota before enrolling at the Law School. After earning his J.D., he served as a district court law clerk for one year before joining the firm of Lampe, Fossum, Jacobson, Borene and Crow in Northfield, Minnesota, where he practiced for the next 13 years. In 1984, then-Gov. Rudy Perpich appointed Borene to a seat on the bench of the 3rd Judicial District, which covers the southeastern corner of the state. Borene served in that role for 26 years, and, after his retirement in 2010, he worked as a senior judge in a number of counties for an additional five years.

Borene’s charitable and recreational activities were many and various. He was a longtime regular contributor to Minnesota Law; a member of the Church of St. Dominic in Northfield, where he sang in the choir; a member of the Northfield Jaycees, Northfield Lions Club, Northfield Senior Center, and Northfield Troubadors; and a member of the Rice County, 5th District, and Minnesota State Bar Associations. With his wife, Linda, he traveled to the six major continents, visiting nearly 60 countries in all.

A funeral mass will be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21, at the Church of St. Dominic, 104 N. Linden St., Northfield. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 20, at the Benson & Langehough Funeral Home, 201 E. 4th St., Northfield, and also at the church during the hour prior to the service on Saturday morning.