William Foster Batchelder (October 15, 1926 – May 7, 2019) was a justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court from 1981 to 1995.
He suspended his educational efforts to enlist in the United States Navy during World War II, entering service in October 1944.
[2] After the war, Batchelder received a Bachelor's degree from the University of New Hampshire in 1949, and a law degree from Boston University School of Law in 1952.
[2] He was appointed to the New Hampshire Superior Court by Governor Walter Peterson in 1970, and then elevated to the state supreme court by Governor Hugh Gallen in 1981.
[3] Batchelder's eldest child, United States Navy Lieutenant Stephen H. Batchelder, died in an aircraft crash onboard the USS Nimitz in the Central Mediterranean on January 25, 1987.