Obituaries

Baker Botts Associate & Spouse Die in Fire Trying to Save Their Son, 4

When a fire broke out in their Dallas home early yesterday, Romina Lorena Mulloy and Michael Levine rushed upstairs to save their 4-year-old son. But the couple was trapped by smoke and flames and all three died together in the fire, reports the Dallas Morning News. Mulloy, 35, had been…

Nov 13, 2009 11:12 PM CST

Woman Lawyer Who Hid Gender in 1930s Law Job Applications Dies at 99

A woman lawyer who used initials in 1930s job applications to hide her gender has died at the age of 99. Anne Sullivan, formerly Anne Chawk, was licensed in 1934 and signed her job applications “A.M. Chawk” so they wouldn’t be tossed out, the Chicago Tribune reports. She volunteered in…

Nov 6, 2009 2:16 PM CST

Ex-Chief Justice of New Mexico Dies While Giving Speech to Law Students

Former New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Gene Franchini collapsed and died Wednesday while giving a speech to first-year students at the University of New Mexico School of Law. Students tried to perform CPR but were unable to revive Franchini, KOB.com reports. The audience of about 100 people included students,…

Nov 5, 2009 2:25 PM CST

Missing Lawyer and Her Husband Are Declared Dead

A Savannah lawyer and her husband have been declared dead by a Georgia judge, more than a year after they disappeared following a meeting with a bookkeeper they suspected of stealing from them. A memorial service for Elizabeth Calvert, 45, and her husband John, 47, is planned later this month.…

Nov 3, 2009 10:06 PM CST

Law Prof Who Raised Awareness of ALS Dies from the Disease

Brigham Young University law professor Michael Goldsmith has died of respiratory failure from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the disease he wrote about in a Newsweek column. Goldsmith was 58, the New York Times reports. In the Newsweek column, Goldsmith challenged Major League Baseball to fight ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s…

Nov 2, 2009 1:25 PM CST

A Death in the Office

Mark Levy had talent, a top-flight resumé and friends in high places. But when he lost his job, none of that was enough.

Nov 2, 2009 4:50 AM CST

Prominent Houston Lawyer John O’Quinn Dies in SUV Accident

Updated: Prominent Houston plaintiffs lawyer John O’Quinn died Thursday morning in an SUV accident. O’Quinn was one of two people riding in a black Suburban west of downtown Houston when the vehicle crossed a median, oncoming traffic lanes and another median, then slammed into a tree, the Houston Chronicle reports.…

Oct 29, 2009 4:38 PM CDT

Ex-Dorsey Partner Kills Himself on Eve of Insider Trading Deal

A former Toronto partner of Dorsey & Whitney has killed himself, reportedly on the eve of a settlement in a criminal insider trading investigation. Lawyer Gil Cornblum killed himself yesterday, according to stories in Bloomberg and the Toronto Globe and Mail. U.S. and Canadian officials had planned to announce a…

Oct 27, 2009 5:03 PM CDT

Lawyer Advising Dallas Court Dies of Swine Flu

A 54-year-old lawyer who was advising a Dallas County court in an investigation has died from complications of the H1N1 virus. Sidney Davis Jr. died from pneumonia brought on by the virus, according to the Associated Press and the Dallas Morning News. Davis’ wife, Linda, and County Judge Jim Foster…

Oct 27, 2009 11:46 AM CDT

Lawyers Say Death of Madoff Associate Complicates Investor Case

The death of Jeffry Picower, suspected of making $7 billion by investing with Bernard Madoff, could complicate a suit seeking to recover money on behalf of other investors who lost money in Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. Picower, 67, was found dead in his swimming pool at his Palm Beach, Fla., mansion…

Oct 26, 2009 11:41 AM CDT

Two Calif. Law Profs with First Amendment Interests Have Died

Two law professors with an interest in media issues have died. Stephen Barnett, who taught at the University of California at Berkeley, died of cardiac arrest on Oct. 13, the New York Times reports. He was 73. A specialist in intellectual property and the First Amendment, he campaigned against a…

Oct 22, 2009 2:13 PM CDT

RIP: Judge William Wayne Justice

U.S. District Judge William Wayne Justice, known for his rulings on ground-breaking class-action suits that compelled Texas to integrate schools, reform prisons, educate illegal immigrants and revamp many other policies has died Tuesday at an Austin nursing home. He was 89. Justice, who had taken senior status in 1998, nevertheless…

Oct 16, 2009 3:15 PM CDT

Deal King & Law Media Mogul Dies; Bruce Wasserstein Once Worked for Cravath

Bruce Wasserstein, a onetime corporate lawyer at Cravath Swaine & Moore who became a deal king and law media mogul has died a few days after being hospitalized for an irregular heartbeat, reports Bloomberg. He was 61 years old. “He made more from investment banking than any man on the…

Oct 14, 2009 10:18 PM CDT

Retired Judge Jerry Buchmeyer Dies

Retired U.S. District Judge Jerry Buchmeyer has died. The Dallas judge was best known for his handling of a 1985 lawsuit that helped desegregate housing, the Associated Press reports. He served as a judge for nearly 30 years and was chief judge for the Northern District of Texas from 1995…

Sep 23, 2009 11:32 AM CDT

Former Holme Roberts Lawyer Dies in Motorcycle Accident

A lawyer who once worked at Holme Roberts & Owen in Denver was found dead from a motorcycle crash on Sunday after more than 100 friends and family mounted a search for the missing man. The body of Donald Masters, 63, was found by elk hunters near an Idaho highway,…

Sep 21, 2009 2:59 PM CDT