Roger W. Breslin, Jr., Esq

Mahwah, NJ - Roger W. Breslin, Jr., Esq. passed away of  respiratory failure due to stroke on Thursday, January 16, 2025. 

Roger was born on September 23, 1937 at St. Mary’s Hospital, Orange, NJ to Alice Regina McKeon (Harrison, NJ ) & The Honorable Roger W. Breslin, Sr. (Lyndhurst, NJ).

Roger is survived by his wife, Anne, daughter, Karen Anne, and son, Roger W. Breslin, III & his wife, Jennifer, and his 3 grand children, Jack, Kelsey & Kaitlyn, whom are the light in his life. 

Roger is also survived by his 4 siblings: Edward F. (Ted) Breslin & wife, Connie; Mary R. McLaughlin & her husband, Don; Virginia M. (Ginny) McCabe & her husband, Tom; John J. (Jay) Breslin & his wife, Peggie & 21 nieces & nephews, their spouses & children in addition to many cousins. 

Roger attended Our Lady of Mount Carmel School, St. Peter’s Preparatory in Jersey City, NJ; (1955) University of Notre Dame, (1959). Upon completing graduation Roger served as a lieutenant (j.g) in the U.S. Naval Reserve from 1959-1961. Roger obtained his J.D. from Rutger’s University School of Law in 1964. 

Roger’s legal career began working as a legal associate for Breslin & Breslin, a personal injury law firm started in 1936 by his uncle, John J. Breslin, also a former Bergen County prosecutor and his father, Roger Sr, a former New Jersey Superior Court judge. He then went to Goodman, O’Dea and Breslin before becoming the First Assistant Prosecutor of Bergen County from 1974-1977 and the Prosecutor of Bergen County from 1977 to 1982. Then he practiced with the firm of Goodman, Stoldt & Breslin in Hackensack prior to joining Beattie Padovano, Breslin, Dunn & Kafafian LLC in 1984 until his retirement in 2008 which the law firm was formerly known as at that time. It is now known as Beattie, Padovano, LLC. 

In his legal career he was known for his integrity and honesty. He influenced hundreds of young lawyers while in the Prosecutor’s office & while at Beattie Padovano. He modeled and taught others how to practice law the right way with ethics, integrity & honesty. 

Roger was also keen on details, facts & numbers so combining his love of sports with details was a winning combination. He followed players in Bergen County sports at the high school level mostly for Bergen Catholic but knew details about Bergen County athletes & knew their stats, their stories as they moved to college & pro sports. Roger could always be found at local Bergen County games. He was known for attending games & watching sports at every level with his family, his cousin, Jerry Breslin, great friend & colleague, Ray Flood, dear friend Dr. John Driscoll & playing golf with his regular group of golfing buddies just to name a few. 

Although Roger was a tough competitor in the courtroom & in life, he began to relax more in retirement. He continued his family’s legacy of faith, family & service with his involvements with St. Paul’s Parish, St. Peter’s Prep, Notre Dame. Other involvements included being on the Board at Holy Name Hospital & previously Hackensack Hospital. 

Roger was known to be a man of few words at times, a man of faith & humble. He loved God, country, Notre Dame (as a plaque on his desk inscribed). In the courtroom, on the golf course & in life Roger was a tough competitor yet he will also be known for his deep faith, commitment to family & being of service. He is a man of integrity & goodness. Job well done, Roger. Roger W. Breslin, Jr., Esq. is loved & will be deeply missed.

We thank God, first & foremost, for all of our blessings, our family, Dad’s brother’s & sisters, cousins & friends, Dad’s doctors, Valley Hospital & most especially, Michael Maron, Patrick Maron, Dr. Charlie Vialotti & all of the staff at Holy Name Hospital’s Villa Marie Claire who cared for Dad, eased his pain & took care of us during this difficult time. We thank God for Dad, and his “Hero’s Journey.”

Viewing will be at Vander Plaat Funeral Home, 257 Godwin Ave, Wyckoff, NJ 07481 on Monday, January 20 from 3 - 7pm. 

A mass of Catholic burial willed be celebrated on Tuesday, January 21 at 1030 am at St. Paul RC Church, 200 Wyckoff Avenue, Ramsey, NJ 07446

Burial will follow at Maryrest Cemetery, 770 Darlington Ave, Mahwah, NJ 07430

In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to The Judge Roger Breslin Fund, a fund that supports the education of seminarians to the Catholic priesthood that Roger W. Breslin, Sr started which was continued by Roger, Jr & his wife, Anne & the Breslin family. http://www.shu.edu/breslin

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