The Honorable Norman H. Stahl of New Hampshire and Chilmark died on April 8. He was 92.

He was a New Hampshire native and a graduate of public schools in Manchester, N.H. He graduated from Tufts College in 1952 and Harvard Law School in 1955. He then clerked for Justice Spaulding on the Massachusetts Supreme Court. When he returned to Manchester, N.H. to work at the firm of Devine Millimet, his worked encompassed corporate, banking, real estate development and public law.

A practical approach grounded in methodical analysis and assessment underpinned all his work. That said, he would credit the cadre of law clerks with whom he worked. He sought lawyers who were smart, well-educated and whose opinions, perspectives and life experience differed from his and were willing to challenge his views.

In 2007, Boston police arrested a drug dealer named Brima Wurie, retrieving an address on Mr. Wurie’s phone that led to his conviction. Mr. Wurie appealed to the First Circuit Court of Appeals which, in 2014, overturned the conviction, arguing that the police had overstepped their bounds.

Judge Stahl wrote the opinion, which was unanimously upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. It marked a key juncture in the digital era: in moving forward, the Fourth Amendment, which bars “unreasonable search and seizures,” would apply to cell phones. In this way, Judge Stahl helped define the Constitutional contours of the age of the Internet.

The decision in Lotus v. Borland, another affirmed by the Supreme Court, also involved technology. By vindicating the Title IX claims brought by the women’s gymnastics and volleyball teams against Brown University, equal opportunity for male and female in college athletics and equal access to financial aid are granted.

Preceded by 35 years of corporate practice, Judge Stahl served as chairman of the Committee on Judicial Security and presented the budget to Congress. He also served on the information technology and budget committees.

He took great pride in the Warren B. Rudman U.S. Courthouse in Concord, N.H. He worked tirelessly with the architect, concerning himself with the smallest details. He thought about people, the work and the use of space, and insisted the judicial chambers be adjacent and on the same floor to produce collegiality and civility.

Judge Stahl directed outside legal efforts for the state of New Hampshire in connection with the bankruptcy proceedings on the Public Service Company of New Hampshire. He served as acting solicitor in Manchester for six months to help organize the office, and was involved in the expansion of the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport. He served as a member and chairman of both the judicial council and the Board of Bar Examiners.

Always interested in politics, he assisted many elected officials and co-chaired Senator Robert Dole’s 1988 presidential campaign in New Hampshire. In 1990, as a member of the judiciary, he was careful to separate himself from all partisan issues. He retired in 2020.

Mr. Stahl and his wife Sue have been Chilmark homeowners since 1979. He loved the Vineyard community and felt very much at home on the Island. He often took excellent photographs at Menemsha and the Vineyard Haven harbor. He was a member of the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center and participated in its Summer Institute. Many of his clerks were introduced to the Vineyard during their visits to the Stahls.

He is survived by by wife Sue Heimerdinger Stahl, son Peter Stahl, daughter Ellen Stahl and Peter’s wife, Jill Weisz.