Obituaries

Jenner Leader Jerold Solovy, ‘Fierce Litigator with the Heart of a Public Servant,’ Dies at Age 80

Jerold Solovy, a renowned Jenner & Block leader celebrated for his litigation and boardroom skills, his pro bono representation of prison inmates and the unfailing charm and courtesy with which he treated everyone from the titans of industry to elevator and newsstand operators, died suddenly yesterday morning at his home…

Jan 20, 2011 6:14 PM CST

Sargent Shriver, Founder of Peace Corps, Other War on Poverty Programs, Is Dead at 95

Sargent Shriver, a member of the Kennedy family renowned for his public service and his work as founding director of the Peace Corps, among many other accomplishments in government and in life, has died. He was 95 years old. A 1941 graduate of Yale Law School, he enlisted in the…

Jan 18, 2011 11:16 PM CST

Judge Killed in Ariz. Shooting Spree Had Issued Several High-Profile Decisions

The federal judge killed Saturday in an attack on U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona was involved in several controversial decisions, but he wasn’t targeted by the suspect ahead of time. Judge John Roll, 63, had been chief judge for Arizona’s federal district court since 2006 and a federal judge…

Jan 10, 2011 1:18 PM CST

Police Search for Clues, Seek Public’s Help, in Slaying of Ex-GOP Official and Yale Law Grad

Police are searching for clues and seeking the public’s help in the slaying of a Yale Law School graduate who served in the administrations of three Republican presidents. After a spotter assigned to prevent illegal material from being dumped at a Delaware landfill saw the body of John Wheeler III…

Jan 4, 2011 4:48 PM CST

Body of Murdered Ex-GOP Official, a Yale Law Grad, Is Found in Del. Landfill

Updated: A former military officer who served in three Republican presidential administrations was found murdered in a Delaware landfill on New Year’s Eve after a worker spotted his body falling off a dump truck. John Wheeler III, 66, was a graduate of Yale Law School who lived in New Castle,…

Jan 3, 2011 9:12 PM CST

Law Student Dies After Fall at Exclusive Chicago Club

A unique and extraordinary first-year law student with a promising future has died after somehow falling down the stairs at an exclusive Chicago club he was visiting with his father during the holiday break. Eric Fatla died yesterday from the severe injuries he sustained in the Christmas Eve fall at…

Dec 28, 2010 7:00 PM CST

Prosecutor of Hoffa, Watergate Conspirators Dies at 81

James F. Neal, who prosecuted Teamsters president Jimmy Hoffa and White House aides during the Nixon Watergate scandal, died at a Nashville, Tenn., hospital Thursday night at 81. The animated, steely-gazed litigator had been suffering from cancer, reports the Washington Post. Neal, a graduate of the University of Wyoming and…

Oct 22, 2010 8:16 PM CDT

Under Pressure in Criminal Probe of Stevens Case Handling, DOJ Prosecutor Commits Suicide

A young Department of Justice prosecutor committed suicide over the weekend, after a year under criminal investigation, along with senior members of the DOJ, concerning the department’s mishandling of the Sen. Ted Stevens case. Partner Robert Luskin of Patton Boggs represented Nicholas Marsh and said he expected his client not…

Sep 27, 2010 7:32 PM CDT

2nd Prosecutor Dies Unexpectedly in Less Than 2 Months in Central Calif. DA’s Office

For the second time in less than two months, a dedicated career prosecutor in a central California district attorney’s office has died unexpectedly, leaving his remaining colleagues and the local legal community stunned and saddened. Shawn Barlow, 40, had no known medical problems but died early Sunday at home of…

Sep 21, 2010 3:24 PM CDT

Pillsbury Winthrop Tax Attorney May Have Been Victim of Domestic Murder-Suicide, Authorities Say

A 35-year-old tax associate at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman has been found slain, apparently shot to death, in her Washington, D.C.-area home. Authorities are saying she may have been a victim of domestic violence. Clare Lenore Stoudt, a mother of five who graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 2008,…

Sep 14, 2010 6:08 PM CDT

Environmental Lawyer Dies While Climbing Mountain in Cascades

An environmental lawyer apparently lost his footing and fell to his death last week while mountain climbing in Washington’s North Cascades National Park. John Arum, 49, was a respected environmental lawyer with a love of the outdoors, the Associated Press reports. His father, boxing promoter Bob Arum, had left a…

Sep 7, 2010 5:36 PM CDT

Sometime Girlfriend Arrested on Suspicion of Murdering Attorney, After Eviction Filing

A woman who reportedly had an on-again, off-again relationship with a California attorney found dead in his home earlier this week has been arrested on suspicion of murdering him. Mark Hafen, 58, had filed an eviction case against Verginia Turner, 42, early this year when she refused to move out…

Sep 3, 2010 6:45 PM CDT

Gail Koff, Ex-Skadden Lawyer Who Pioneered Discount Legal Services, Dies at 65

Gail Koff, a onetime corporate lawyer who wound up serving as the public face of a pioneering consumer law firm has died of complications from leukemia treatment. She was 65 years old. After growing up in upscale Scarsdale, N.Y., she put herself through law school, as one of the few…

Sep 2, 2010 5:05 PM CDT

Gunman Suspected of Killing Lawyer Wife, Then Himself, Described as Kind, Gentle

A gunman suspected of strangling his wife, a former Barnes & Thornburg partner, before firing at the law firm and then killing himself was described as kind and gentle by family and friends. The lawyer, 44-year-old Mary Jane Frisby, had filed for divorce on Aug. 18 and resigned from her…

Aug 30, 2010 3:52 PM CDT

Wachtell Partner Dies of Brain Tumor at 49; Teen Daughter Raised $300K for Cancer Research

Mergers and acquisitions partner Craig Wasserman of Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz died Monday as a result of a malignant brain tumor. He was 49 years old. A brilliant and creative thinker who was a supportive and committed colleague, Wasserman worked on major deal after major deal until a few…

Aug 25, 2010 8:37 PM CDT