Donald Lay, a retired federal judge who led the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for more than a decade, has died. He was 80.

Lay died Sunday at his home in North Oaks, Minn., the court said. Chief Judge James Loken said Lay's health had been declining for some time and that he retired in January.

Lay served on the St. Louis-based appeals court for more than 40 years after being appointed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966, when Lay was 39. He was the second youngest person ever to be appointed.

He served as chief judge from 1980 to 1991, when he took senior status and handled a slightly reduced caseload, said Maureen Gornik of the 8th Circuit's St. Paul, Minn., office.

Lay was born in Princeton, Ill. He attended the U.S. Naval Academy and earned his bachelor's and law degrees at the University of Iowa.