When Trudeau announced his retirement as Liberal leader and prime minister, MacGuigan ran to succeed him at the 1984 Liberal leadership convention. He placed fifth. He retired from politics following the convention, and became a judge on the federal Court of Appeal.
P. Whitney Lackenbauer, ed. (2002). An Inside Look at External Affairs during the Trudeau Years: The Memoirs of Mark MacGuigan. University of Calgary Press. ISBN1-55238-076-9.