John MacArthur Wright

John MacArthur "Mac" Wright was born July 11, 1930, in Idaho Falls, Idaho. He attended Boise Junior College, where he served as Student Body President, graduating in 1951, and earned a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Utah in 1953. He went on to graduate from Stanford Law School in 1960, and over the course of his life was admitted to practice law in California, Nevada, and Utah.

Wright built a legal career spanning 48 years and was known as a gentleman lawyer who believed that the practice of law was a profession and not a business. Among the most significant matters of his career, he served as one of four principal lawyers representing nearly 1,200 individuals in the landmark Downwinders litigation concerning radiation exposure from nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site. That effort contributed to the passage of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, signed into law in 1990.

Beyond his legal work, Wright was active in civic life, serving as president of the St. George Chamber of Commerce, president of the Rotary Club, and president of the Dixie Little League. He died on August 8, 2014.