Marion Percell Fish

Marion Percell Fish was born on June 14th (Flag Day!) in 1953, to the late Daniel and Pauline Percell. She grew up in New York and Hawaii and eventually settled in Gillette, New Jersey where she moved after marrying her husband, Robert, in 1988. She passed away on July 10, 2026, which was their 38th wedding anniversary.

Marion’s beloved mother Pauline died of cancer when she was 10 years old. This tragedy shaped Marion and her family throughout her adolescence. After Pauline’s passing Marion attended Hunter College Junior High School in New York and then she moved to the Big Island of Hawaii where she attended the Hawaii Preparatory Academy and became enamored of the beauty and multicultural atmosphere of the islands. Once she returned to Manhattan, Marion enrolled in George Washington High School but was admitted to Rutgers University and enrolled despite being just short of NYC high school graduation requirements.

Marion’s father was a piano tuner and restorer and her mother a music teacher and homemaker. In Waimea, on the Big Island of Hawaii, Marion lived in ranch country, with her own horse and saddle, but no surfboard. Marion and Rob met through a sailing club in New Jersey and experienced many adventures together on their own sailboat. Marion and Rob raised two children, Rebecca and Benjamin, with whom they experienced many other sorts of adventures, creating priceless memories.

Marion practiced law for more than 40 years. She attended Rutgers University and Seton Hall School of Law, where she was on the law review, earned brief-writing awards, participated in moot court, and graduated with honors. After graduation, she was an associate at Lowenstein Sandler before joining the United States Attorney’s Office in Newark, New Jersey, where she dedicated herself to the pursuit of justice for thirty years. She served first as an appellate attorney participating in approximately 25 oral arguments before the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She then served with distinction in the Office’s narcotics unit and was promoted to Senior Litigation Counsel. She was recognized nationally for her expertise in prosecuting money laundering crimes and became the Chief of the Office’s first Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit.

In 2015, Marion left the East Coast to pursue her dream of living in Hawaii again. She joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Honolulu, eventually becoming the Chief of its Appeals Division, appearing regularly before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals before retiring in late 2021.

Marion is remembered by her colleagues as an excellent writer and courtroom advocate, who was detail-oriented and meticulous. Above all, however, she is remembered for her dedication to mentoring and training her more junior Assistant U.S. Attorney colleagues, spending hours teaching them how to improve their skills and be better prosecutors and welcoming them into the federal family. Her devotion to fairness and the rule of law as well as her commitment to excellence inspired generations of federal prosecutors. She was a passionate advocate of the independence of the United States judiciary.

Marion lived a life of depth and purpose, and not just in her career. Marion was fascinated by Hawaiian history, culture, and cuisine. In Hawaii Marion and Rob had an apartment overlooking Honolulu Harbor from which Marion could walk to the Federal Building and Courthouse and from which they could watch the sun setting over the Pacific. Marion enjoyed cooking Hawaiian food, listening to Hawaiian music, and reading and writing about the history of Hawaii.

Marion had tremendous intellectual curiosity and a talent for historical research and writing. For many years, she served as a member of the board and vice president of the Historical Society of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, where she was responsible for its oral history program and inventorying the Court’s papers, photographs, recordings, and other memorabilia. Inspired by her love for the New Jersey United States Attorney’s Office, Marion planned the celebration of its 225th anniversary. She scoured libraries and museums in New Jersey, the National Archives in both New York and Washington, D.C., and chronicled the memories of many former Office employees to research, write, produce, and edit a documentary film that encapsulated more than two centuries of the Office. She subsequently wrote a manuscript detailing the history of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii “for fun.” Not one to sit still, upon her retirement from federal service, Marion took on a new endeavor. She was commissioned by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals to write a book on the history of the Court. Marion loved her federal family—the judges, Pretrial Services, Probation, courthouse staff, and members of the District’s Historical Society, and they loved her right back.

Marion led a vibrant and deeply rewarding life. Her greatest rewards were her children, Rebecca and Benjamin, who made her proud of their accomplishments and sense of ethics. In addition to Rob, Ben and Rebecca, she is also survived by her brother Peter Percell, sister Barbara Southard, and dear friends whose lives were touched by her radiant spirit.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her honor to the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases: https://www.aasldfoundation.org/support-our-cause/ways-give

The family will be receiving guests at the Bernheim-Apter-Kreitzman Suburban Funeral Chapel, 68 Old Short Hills Road, Livingston, New Jersey 07039, on July 23, 2026, from 10:15 am to 10:45 am, followed by the Funeral Service at 11:00 am.

Burial will take place at Mount Hebron Cemetery, 130-04 Horace Harding Expy, New York, New York 11367, on July 23, 2026.