PROVIDENCE - Never second-guess yourself. That is a practice to which state Supreme Court Chief Justice Joseph R. Weisberger has tried to hold fast during 44 distinguished years on the bench.

"In order to maintain one's sanity in a position of this kind, you must resist the tendency to reconsider and retry the decision," Weisberger says. "If you continue to second-guess yourself, your tenure will be marked by neurosis, if not psychosis. Once it's done, you have to go on."

So there will be no second-guessing, apparently, when Weisberger retires either by the end of this year or next July at the latest.

Weisberger reached his decision last month upon celebrating his 80th birthday, and informed Governor Almond of his plans last week. In an interview with Channel 10 on Monday, he let the cat out of the bag. "I think that perhaps the time has come for a younger person to take over the helm of the Rhode Island judicial system," he said.

Though his wife has been nudging him to retire for some time, "when I reached the age of 80, it seemed to me to be a watershed — or at least a time to set up a plan for retirement within the near future," Weisberger elaborated during an interview yesterday in a walnut-paneled Supreme Court conference room.

The retirement date has not yet been selected. Weisberger has asked Almond for his input on that, "because he will be appointing my successor — the [ judicial] nominating commission will be interviewing applicants and both houses will be required to confirm," Weisberger explained.

"I wanted to have my date coincide as well as possible with the needs and requirements of the appointed process," he said.

At 80, Weisberger still boasts a full complement of thick white hair, an energetic step and a keen mind. "I may still volunteer to assist the court as needed, in accordance with my abilities," he said.

A Rhode Island native, Weisberger was graduated first from Brown University (with a stint in the Navy in between) and then from Harvard Law School. He returned home to serve as town solicitor in Glocester, town moderator in East Providence, then three years in the state Senate as minority leader. He was appointed to the Superior Court in 1953, and joined the Supreme Court in 1978.

But for a scandal involving Weisberger's predecessor, the chief justice might already be enjoying his intended retirement indulgences of more frequent nature walks along the shoreline, extended Florida vacations and reading.

In 1993, in fact, Weisberger had publicly announced his plans to retire as an associate Supreme Court justice and take a lucrative paid position as a settlement counselor for the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

But as fate would have it, a growing imbroglio over then-Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas F. Fay boiled over, with criminal charges pressed against Fay for giving legal assignments to friends and a business partner and for his questionable handling of a secret court fund.

Rather than face impeachment, Fay resigned.

Asked to stay on as acting chief justice, Weisberger did so, then two years later assumed control of the state's judicial system.

"I gave it up cheerfully. I do not regret it," Weisberger said of his decision not to pursue the appeals court job and remain here instead. His goal then was "to try and restore a sense of confidence in the management of the judicial system," and a good relationship with the General Assembly.

"I do believe by staying on I did perform a service," Weisberger said. "I don't regret it. I found it challenging and rewarding."

In a statement he issued yesterday, Governor Almond said Weisberger "has dedicated his life to serving the people of Rhode Island" and has served the state "with distinction." In particular, "as chief justice, Joseph Weisberger restored dignity to the Rhode Island Supreme Court," Almond said.

Avuncular and gentlemanly, Weisberger said he has looked to former Supreme Court Justice G. Frederick Frost as a role model.

Frost served on the state Superior Court until he was 86, "at which time he was elevated to the Supreme Court, and he served until he was 91," Weisberger said. "He was a very fine gentleman, a model of judicial deportment and behavior."

Asked what Supreme Court decisions presented the greatest challenges, Weisberger closed his eyes momentarily and searched his memory. "Some cases having to do with the Public Utilities Commission were very difficult," he said.

Recalling one of them, Weisberger noted that it involved "eleven thousand pages of pre-file testimony. When they wheeled it in on the dollies, I said 'Oh my gosh.' But we did get through it, and reached a decision."

Every decision involving parental rights and custody of children "I find to be emotionally as well as intellectually challenging," he said.

Weisberger also cited cases involving DEPCO — the taxpayer-supported state agency created to deal with debt left over from the 1991 credit-union crisis — as especially challenging "because of the complexity of the financial arrangements and the enormous responsibility placed in DEPCO."

One of the more difficult aspects of the Supreme Court, he said, "is that you are constantly dealing with a great variety of issues — from Family Court to workers' compensation to a whole host of administrative agencies."

Thus, a judge spends much time rereading the statutes. To become a lawyer or a judge, he said, "you're condemning yourself to a life of a perpetual student."

But for Weisberger, there would be nothing better.

"This has been my life for nearly 45 years. My entire existence has been attuned to this legal system, which I dearly love. I always enjoyed the work. I always felt it a great privilege," he said. "My secretary will tell you that I enjoy coming to work more than my vacations."

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