Montgomery K. Hyun

Hyun—Montgomery K. Hyun, 94, on August 3, 2016, in Medford Leas, N.J., surrounded by his family. Montgomery was born on June 19, 1922, in Anju-si, South Pyongan, in what became North Korea. His childhood was idyllic until the country was occupied and separated. He obtained a diploma from Seoul College of Economics in 1942, but went into hiding to avoid Japanese forced labor camps. When General MacArthur’s soldiers liberated South Korea from the Japanese in 1945, Hyun was malnourished, weighed less than 100 pounds, and suffered from scurvy. The U.S. Army military government hired him as an interpreter, and he advanced to chief political analyst.

In 1947, he came to the United States on a U.S. Army troop ship to continue his education. He earned a bachelor’s in political science in 1949 from Swarthmore College, where he met his future wife, Ariel Hollinshead. He also earned a master’s in public law and government from Columbia University in 1952 and a law degree from Georgetown University in 1956. He once said, “I left Swarthmore aspiring for an academic career, but in my two years at Columbia I discovered Pound, Cardozo, Brandeis, and Holmes and decided to become an American lawyer.”

Throughout the Korean War, he was an announcer for the Voice of America. In 1960, he became a U.S. citizen and was admitted to the District of Columbia bar. He worked first for the law firm of Covington and Burling and then as a trial attorney for the Federal Trade Commission, where he prosecuted corporate merger and trade restraint cases and defended FTC decisions before the U.S. Court of Appeals. He was appointed administrative law judge in 1973 and served as chief judge from 1987 to 1990. He believed strongly in antitrust law and was known as a fair, thorough, and wise arbiter. Some of his cases, including three related analgesic cases and a free speech case involving smoking claims, drew nationwide attention.

He attended Medford (N.J.) Meeting, where Ariel was a member. Throughout his life, he loved nature, art, and classical music, and enjoyed studying Eastern and Western political and moral philosophers of the east and west. He was an avid reader and a skilled calligrapher, and remained intellectually engaged and physically active until his last days. Friends will remember his wry sense of humor and unfailing manners.

Montgomery is survived by his wife, Ariel Hollinshead Hyun; two children, William Hyun and Christopher Hyun (Maria Pallante-Hyun); three grandchildren; and many devoted and beloved nieces and nephews in the United States and Korea. Cards and notes may be sent care of Ariel Hollinshead Hyun, Medford Leas, Medford, NJ 08055. Donations may be made to Medford Friends Meeting, 14 Union St., Medford, NJ 08055.