Judge Harry R. McCue was appointed full-time US Magistrate Judge on September 15, 1970.  His responsibilities included presiding at all court hearings involving persons charged with felony offenses from the initial presentment under Rule 5 through the formal arraignment, Rule 10, and the conduct of the pre-trial discovery and miscellaneous motions at the omnibus hearing.  His performed duties fell within the purvey of the US Magistrate Judge and included entertaining petitions for search warrants, arrest warrants, and any other special request from the Federal law enforcement agencies in the district.  He also conducted trials of misdemeanors and minor offenses.

(The US Magistrate Judge position was created to meet the crisis in the courts during this time.  The objective of the pilot program was to provide real assistance to the courts.  In the Southern District of California, the Article III Judges were extremely burdened and the US Magistrate Judges were given the latitude to explore new methods along with having great freedom in handling their cases.)

This district become a model for the US in utilization of US Magistrate Judges.  On the civil side, Judge Harry R. McCue handled thousands of civil cases over his 23 years on the bench.  In 1972 he initiated and approved the concept of settlement hearings in every civil case.  The concept was novel at the time, however, he was able to settle literally hundreds of cases each year.  Cases settled included: Admiralty, Intellectual Property, Securities Fraud, Civil Rights, Equity Receiverships, Savings & Loan/Banking, Miller Act Cases, Patent Cases, and Federal Tort Claims.  Under diversity jurisdiction, he also settled many cases that involved state law throughout the US.

With reference to the Miller Act Cases, Judge Harry R. McCue handled hundreds of such cases requiring him to resolve disputes between government contractors and the US involving the construction of military bases, submarine support facilities, barracks and hospitals, and other Federal construction projects.

Judge Harry R. McCue was involved in the litigation with the FSLIC, RTC, and FDIC.  The Southern District of California was totally submerged in criminal cases and it was clear that the civil case load had to be handled in a non-traditional manner.  Since his court was assigned to "heavy duty" civil cases, it was essential to develop an aggressive program o resolve these cases in a manner that did not involve the trial courts.  This aggressive settlement program produced immediate results and became the blueprint for handling civil cases.  The parties resolved their differences with finality and the program initiated a trend that is now known as the "Alternative Dispute Resolution".

In 1990, Judge Harry R. McCue was appointed as a Special Master by the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to mediate a series of cases between and among the Hopi Tribe, The Navajo Nation, The US, and a class of Navajo families living on 2.2 million acres of land in Northern Arizona.  These cases were consolidated by the Ninth Circuit and referred to Judge Harry R. McCue for the purpose of resolving the century old dispute over the "ownership" and boundaries of the disputed land.  All previous efforts by the Congress of the US and the US Courts had failed to bring about a peaceful resolution of the on-going conflict among and between the Hopi and Navajo nations and their people.  A majority of Judge Harry R. McCue's time through 1993 was spent in living and working with the US Representatives from the Department of Justice (Peter Steenland) and the Solicitor's Office in Phoenix (Daniel Jackson), the Hopi Chairman and the Tribal Council, the Navajo Nation's President, and the leaders of the Navajo Class of Families subject to relocation.

A global resolution of the land dispute was achieved, and all parties signed and ratified the agreement which was implemented by the US Congress.  Judge Harry R. McCue continued as the Special Master after his retirement in December 1993 until 1995.  A recent check-in with Daniel Jackson in the Solicitor's Office in Phoenix revealed that the agreement is working well.

Judge Harry R. McCue has been involved in other land disputes between and among the US, the Torres-Martinex Band and the Coachella Valley Water District.  He has settled disputes that have arisen between the Sycuan Indian Tribe, the Manager of Gaming hired by the Tribe and disgruntled patrons of the gaming casino.  Additionally, Judge Harry R. McCue has settled a dispute between the Pala Band of Indians over a mine that is currently being mined by civilians.  The vein was discovered in the 1880's.