The Honorable David Emerson Crabtree

1927 - 2015

The Honorable David Emerson Crabtree Attorney and tax court judge with role in shaping NJ taxation law, author of volume on the subject, of West Caldwell The Honorable David Emerson Crabtree, JTC (Ret.) of West Caldwell, N.J., died peacefully on Jan. 27, 2015, after a long illness. He was 87 years old. Judge Crabtree was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 27, 1927. He was honorably discharged from the United States Navy after World War II and graduated from Ohio State University in 1949. He then attended Harvard Law School, graduating in 1952. Judge Crabtree practiced law in Woodbury, N.J., for 18 years, specializing in federal taxation. In 1979, he was the second judge appointed to the newly formed tax court of New Jersey. David happily served on the court for 18 years, authoring more than 135 opinions which were published in the bound volumes of the "Tax Court of New Jersey." Upon retirement, Judge Crabtree authored a legal treatise on state taxation in New Jersey. He was a member of the Cherry Hill Society for the Preservation of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America (SPBSQSA) for 15 years. David was a devout baseball fan, attending as many Boston Red Sox games as possible while he was at Harvard. His senior legal thesis reflected his love of baseball by first analyzing the anti-trust aspects of baseball's then existing reserve clause that granted a baseball club the perpetual right to renew a player's contract and then predicting the free agency system that the players won through arbitration in December 1975. Judge Crabtree is survived by his beloved wife of over 24 years, Moira Crabtree (Lynch); daughters, Leslie Crabtree Calupca and Ellen Crabtree, stepchildren, Gregory S. Sullivan and Brooke E. Troisi, and cherished grandchildren, David Crabtree-Logan, Meghan Crabtree-Logan, Brendan R. Sullivan, Kiera M. Sullivan, Amy C. Sullivan, Emma E. Troisi and Sean M. Troisi. A memorial service is tentatively scheduled for the month of May. Funeral arrangements were held under the direction of Farmer Funeral Home in Roseland, N.J. For updated service information or to share condolences, please visit www.farmerfuneral.com. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to your favorite charity.