PORTLAND – John Roberts’ recent confirmation as chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court has made headlines from coast to coast.

But in the law offices of Pierce Atwood, Bangor native Ralph Lancaster is focused on another chief justice named John, whose landmark ruling in Marbury vs. Madison laid the framework for American constitutional law. Lancaster, 75, spearheaded a campaign to honor Chief Justice John Marshall’s memory with a commemorative silver dollar, issued this spring on the 250th anniversary of Marshall’s birth.

“Although he was not the first Supreme Court justice, he was the justice who made the court,” Lancaster said during a recent interview in his office overlooking the Old Port and Casco Bay, where pictures of him with such dignitaries as Margaret Thatcher, William Rehnquist and both Presidents Bush line the walls.

Lancaster serves as a trustee and the vice president of the Supreme Court Historical Society, whose members had long wanted to mint a commemorative Marshall coin. With the anniversary approaching, it seemed like the right time to unveil the coin, and Lancaster was the right man for the job.

“We looked among our distinguished trustees on the society’s board and very quickly determined that our strongest potential champion to chair this campaign was trustee Ralph Lancaster,” Frank Jones, president of the Supreme Court Historical Society, said in a statement.

But as Lancaster found out, it wasn’t quite that simple.

“The process is, as I found out to my horror, incredibly complex,” Lancaster said, smiling, in a bow tie and brown suit. “Congress can approve up to two [a year] and there’s intense competition for them.”

He began the journey in 2003 at a time when a dozen other groups sent proposals to Congress, including the U.S. Marine Corps Museum and the Disabled American Veterans, which had “very powerful lobbyists.”

So did the historical society – then Chief Justice William Rehnquist was an early and vocal supporter of the coin. Lancaster assembled a grass-roots committee of 15 lawyers throughout the country to aid in the effort and contacted Sens. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who “led the charge for me.”

“In the House it was more difficult, and the bill has to originate in the House,” Lancaster explained.

The chairman of the finance committee didn’t think the coin was a priority, and it eventually moved to the ways and means committee, “so we started all over again” with different language, Lancaster said. By this point, it was March 2004, and they were running out of time – bills that aren’t enacted in the session in which they are introduced die.

The coin lived, however, and in April of this year, the first 100,000 of 400,000 U.S. Supreme Court coins were minted. For each coin sold, $10 will go directly to the Supreme Court Historical Society, which is dedicated to collecting and preserving the history – as well as artifacts and antiques – related to the court. The group also provides scholarships for high school teachers to learn more about the court’s history.

“I enjoyed the challenge,” Lancaster said, smiling. “Especially because it benefits the society. I’m glad about that.”

Though Lancaster serves the historical society and knows many of the Supreme Court justices personally, one challenge he hasn’t savored is appearing before the court. He had planned to on one occasion, but the case settled before he got there.

“I’ve argued in the World Court, but never argued in front of the Supreme Court,” said Lancaster, a partner at Pierce Atwood who is still a practicing attorney. “I’d love to do it. I just have to get the right case.”

The John Marshall commemorative coin costs $39 and is available by visiting www.usmint.gov, www.supremecourthistory.org or by calling the Supreme Court Historical Society gift shop at (800) 539-4438.