"Anyone who has had the opportunity to work alongside him, or try a case against him, walked away from the exchange a better lawyer and a better person."
What was his secret? According to Keith "Chuck" Roberts Jr., managing partner of Roberts & Associates, it was his father's ability to deliver big-city skills and sophistication in a down-home manner, combined with his ability to be a fierce advocate but a consummate gentleman.
Roberts Sr. developed his practice skills the old-fashioned way through drive and determination, hard work and living by his word.
Born in 1928 in White Hall, Roberts was the son of a Baptist minister who had to move the family every four years. By the time he was in fourth grade, he knew he wanted to be a trial attorney, although his father would have liked him to enter the ministry.
After spending a year at Western Illinois University, he went to work with the FBI identification division and continued his undergraduate work at George Washington University.
Despite the prestige of the FBI, having to maintain a full class schedule while working 57 hours a week for a salary of $1,954 persuaded Roberts to return to Illinois to complete his education.
He received his juris doctorate in 1953 from the University of Illinois College of Law and accepted his first position as a trial attorney with a private practitioner in Elizabethtown.
A year later, he entered the Army JAG Corps despite failing the physical exam and served a three-year tour at Fort Riley, Kansas, after a training program at the University of Virginia.
"I came out as a captain and a young attorney with a wealth of trial experience under my belt," Roberts said. "We tried military offenses and had to alternate serving as defense or prosecuting attorney. It was a wonderful experience, and I am not certain of anywhere else an attorney can gain such valuable exposure."
At age 29, Roberts headed for Chicago and for three years did defense work for the Pennsylvania Railroad in Federal Employee Liability Act cases. Then he jumped the tracks and became a plaintiff's attorney for seven years with Hensley, Monek & Hensley.
In 1968, Roberts moved his family to the suburbs and opened a practice above a Sears & Roebuck catalog store in downtown Naperville.
"It was infinitely better financially to be practicing in Chicago, and the move to open my own firm made for a drastic change in pace and environment," Roberts conceded. "However, the change afforded me new opportunities. I have never doubted it was the right thing to do."
His first client asked him to draw up a will. Roberts went downstairs to Sears, bought a typewriter and produced the will for $10. In 1970, he became a founding partner in the Wheaton firm of Donovan, Dichtl, Atten, Mountcastle & Roberts.
That move prompted Roberts to become involved in the DuPage County Bar. His subsequent reputation around the legal community was as the go-to man whose gifts of time, talent and devotion were generous.
He was the association's general counsel for more than 10 years without compensation, and he initiated several programs that still exist.
U.S. District Judge John W. Darrah, a DCBA past president. recalls that "Keith directed several successful actions brought by our bar association."
They included a suit against a major Chicago newspaper in defense of a judge who had been unfairly criticized, another against a title company to restrict activities of its agents during real estate closings, and a mandamus action for the DuPage County Board to acquire more courtroom facilities.
Roberts was the founder and president of the DuPage County Legal Assistance Foundation, which provides funding for legal services for the indigent. For his leadership, he was named the bar association's Lawyer of the Year in 1978.
He worked with local government officials, lawyers and the community at large to raise funds necessary to hire a full-time staff attorney for the legal aid program. The agency now has three attorneys, four support staff, and a contingent of pro bono volunteers.
"Keith is a legend in the county and has left a legacy with the legal aid program because he is so well respected," said Brenda Carroll, executive director and managing attorney.
"His ability to rally the troops to support a program is unparalleled, and his reputation is magnetic," she added. "It's a 'build it and they will come' inspiration. If Keith Roberts believes something worthy of time and support, so will his colleagues."
In 1979, Roberts and Joseph Donovan formed the firm of Donovan & Roberts. "Joe Donovan was a great partner and a tremendous lawyer," he said.
"The only thing we ever argued about was whose name would go first. We each insisted the other's name should be first, but in the end, I told him an Irishman should go ahead of a Welshman, and so it was settled."
Wheaton attorney Richard D. Felice, a DuPage Bar past president who serves on the ISBA Board of Governors, says Roberts is the kind of person one meets and never forgets.
"He seemed to do everything with ease," Felice said. "He has a commanding presence, is well received by the community and is an exemplary role model, both in and out of the courtroom, for young lawyers to aspire to. I later figured out his magic was preparation, modesty, and civility."
Another past president, John F. Donahue, calls Roberts the Babe Ruth of the legal profession. "He has zealously and diligently represented his clients' interests, but always within the bounds of civility and high ethical standards.
More than just an accomplished lawyer, "this man has devoted his life to knowing and loving the law and, above all, teaching other lawyers and judges to do the same," Donahue said.
Roberts initiated and taught for years at the DuPage County Bar Trial Advocacy Workshop for young lawyers. He was also a faculty member for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy from 1972 through 1997 and the Harvard Teachers Training Program.
One of his fondest memories was teaching English trial lawyers at Oxford and being hired by a London firm of solicitors to train expert witnesses. That was followed by a stint in Scotland to teach more trial lawyers.
"What was most exciting about this particular experience was that I was able to prepare expert witnesses in England, a practice not allowed in their legal system," he said.
"Although I was not entitled to know what the cases were about, and every instruction was conducted in the abstract, our efforts directly impacted and improved expert witness testimony on the stand."
From 1997 to 2000, Roberts' skill in implementing initiatives was tapped by Judge Anderson to co-chair a Family Court Task Force. His efforts helped create a court in which families with domestic relations, juvenile and criminal cases could be heard before one judge.
In 2002, he received the bar association's Elbert H. Gary Award for Professional Excellence an award that since has been renamed the Ralph A. Gabric Award in memory of the ISBA and DCBA past president.
Katz respected for 'doing the right thing'
Colleagues of Laureate Martin H. Katz in the Rock Island firm of Katz, Huntoon & Fieweger, thought that if he knew they were nominating him, he would say it was just for being old.
"Of course, we are nominating Marty for his professional principles, his service to both the local and legal communities, and the example he has set," Andrew M. Rink wrote.
A 1962 honors graduate of the Northwestern University School of Law and a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Katz was honored last year when he concluded 12 years of service on the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission Review Board.
ISBA past president Leonard Amari, who chairs the Review Board on which Katz served, said "I have never met a man with greater integrity or concern with doing the right thing."
Bruce Meachum of Danville, another Review Board member, said Katz dealt with each case "in a conscientious, knowledgeable and thorough manner (and) displayed great wisdom about human nature and general ethics during his deliberations."
Katz has tried civil cases in more than 20 Illinois counties, as well as federal courts in Illinois and Iowa. A Charter Fellow of the Illinois Bar Foundation, he serves on the ISBA Committee on Judicial Evaluation Outside Cook County.
A Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, he was praised for his outstanding leadership when he chaired its downstate Illinois committee.
Katz has been a trustee and president of the Rock Island Police Pension Fund and a founding board member of Skills Inc., a not-for-profit organization that advocates employment of the physically and mentally handicapped.
He has served on the board of the Rock Island County Bar Association and is a past president of the Augustana College Alumni Association. He recently received a Legion of Honor award for 40 years of service in the Kiwanis Club.
"Professionally speaking, (Katz) is widely known by members of the bar as a skilled litigant who lives by the highest standards of professional courtesy," said retired Supreme Court justice James D. Heiple of Peoria.
Quinn unravels knotty issues with dignity
Neil K. Quinn of Chicago, a partner in Pretzel & Stouffer, joined the firm in 1961, four years after graduation from the DePaul University College of Law.
A member of the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar and the Pattern Jury Instructions (Civil) Committee, he served for 12 years on the ARDC Review Board.
ARDC administrator Mary Robinson recalled that Quinn "was unfailingly polite and respectful to lawyers who appeared before the board... Neil's classically gracious demeanor brought heightened dignity to the proceedings."
A Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Quinn is a past president of the International Association of Defense Counsel and the Society of Trial Lawyers. He is past chair of the St. Francis Hospital board and former board member of the Defense Research Institute.
Quinn served on the ISBA Committee on Federal Judicial Appointments and the Illinois Supreme Court Committee to Review Illinois Rules of Evidence. He has been on the faculty of the International Association of Defense Counsel Trial Academy and the University of Wyoming Law School Trial Practice Academy.
"Neil continually demonstrates a keen interest in the education and professional development of young lawyers," Cook County Judge Carolyn Quinn wrote in her nomination letter. "It is in this area that his exemplary qualities shine."
She added that he "embodies all of the qualities of an ideal Laureate... Neil loves the law. He relishes unraveling knotty legal issues, and is genuinely excited by novel theories and tactics."
Academy Laureate Philip Corboy added that Neil Quinn's "integrity is genuine and obvious, and you can almost see it walk a step ahead of him. He does not waver from his word."
Another Laureate, George Leighton, observed that Quinn is among those who possess "those qualities that distinguish the lawyer from members of every profession or calling... He has taught law. And he has practiced it with distinction."
Harris Agnew, lauded pioneer in court effort to employ ADR
By Stephen Anderson
Harris H. Agnew of Rockford, a 2004 Laureate, served twice as chief judge of the 17th Judicial Circuit and is credited with pioneering the first court-annexed arbitration and mediation programs in the state.
"Few lawyers have made a greater impact on a single area of practice, while devoting endless uncompensated hours to promote the concept of ADR," ISBA board member H. Case Ellis wrote in his letter of nomination.
The ADR programs Agnew pioneered in the 17th Circuit "have served as a model for those since undertaken by other circuits," said retired judge Jerome Lerner, who also served on the Supreme Court committee.
Agnew was vice chair of the Supreme Court Committee on Alternative Dispute Resolution, and he chaired the ADR committee of the Illinois Judges Association for seven years.
He chaired the ISBA Committee on Alternative Dispute Resolution before it became a section, and also was chair of the Committee on Law-related Education for the Public and vice chair of the former Committee on Juvenile Justice.
A 1972 graduate of The John Marshall Law School, the Laureate was elected to the circuit court in 1976, and he served for 10 of his 20 years on the bench as chief judge. He has been of counsel to the Agnew Law Office, with his son, Patrick H. Agnew, since January 1997.
Harris Agnew served the Illinois Judicial Conference as a member of committees on Courtroom Management, Administration of the Judicial System, Dispute Resolution Study, and Juvenile Problems. He was a member of the Governor's Task Force on Merit Selection.
Agnew chaired Winnebago County Bar Association committees on the Northern Illinois University College of Law and on public relations, and he is a past president of the Rockford Park District board and the Rock Valley Kiwanis.
Among the organizations that have honored him are the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, the Illinois Public Defender Association and the Northern Illinois Chemical Dependency Service Network.
Agnew continues his dedication to ADR as director of mediation services for the Center for Analysis of Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems and chair of its executive committee.
"Harris Agnew is an ambassador of civility for the profession," Case Ellis said. "Despite his accomplishments as a lawyer and a judge, he remains a humble servant of the law and the legal community."
Thomas Sullivan was influence in state death penalty reform
Laureate Thomas P. Sullivan of Chicago is a partner in Jenner & Block, where he has practiced since 1954 except for four years as U.S. attorney for the Northern District from 1977 to 1981.
"Sullivan's pro bono efforts on behalf of poor people and people of color suffering from racial discrimination remind lawyers everywhere why they wanted to go to law school," James R. Covington III, ISBA director of legislative affairs, wrote in his nomination letter.
Sullivan was co-chair of the Governor's Commission on Capital Punishment, which produced a constructive analysis of the state's flawed death penalty system. After his service as chair concluded, he worked with the legislature to ensure that death penalty reforms were enacted.
Covington observed Sullivan as he "repeatedly counseled and advised those drafting Senate Bill 472. When a respected legal figure was needed to write an op-ed piece to move the public on this issue, he did it."
A 1952 cum laude graduate of the Loyola University School of Law, he has served on the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Jury Instructions in Criminal Cases and the Rules Committee, and the Criminal Jury Instruction Committee of the 7th Circuit.
A former member of the ISBA Board of Governors, Sullivan chaired the Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council and was co-editor of its Trial Briefs newsletter for 10 years. He also chaired American Bar Association and Chicago Bar Association committees on defense of the indigent.
As U.S. attorney, Sullivan prosecuted an Illinois attorney general for tax fraud and initiated the investigation of circuit court corruption that became Operation Greylord.
Academy Laureate Jerold S. Solovy of Jenner & Block, in support of Sullivan's nomination, wrote that he "is one of the fathers of our firm's exceptional pro bono program" and the inspiration for its "dedication to pro bono causes and public service."
Scott F. Turow, a former assistant U.S. attorney, added that "From the day I first met him, Tom Sullivan has been a model to me. His vision of the law as an instrument to enhance our society's equality and fairness has always stayed with me."