Raccuglia awarded Leonard M. Ring Lifetime Achievement Award

Anthony C. Raccuglia of Peru, will be awarded the prestigious Leonard M. Ring Lifetime Achievement Award at the lllinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA) Convention on Friday, June 11. The convention will be held at the Oak Brook Hills Marriott Resort in Oak Brook. The criteria of the award is as follows: "This award is given annually at the convention banquet to someone selected by a committee appointed by the president. The recipient is someone who has devoted, as Leonard did, a substantial part of their life and their practice to ITLA, someone who has done more than is called for. Someone who had the standards of Leonard, the work ethics of Leonard and the commitment to ITLA that Leonard had. At the same time, it keeps alive the memory of Leonard Ring." Anthony Raccuglia is a first generation Italian-American whose parents settled in the LaSalle Peru area in the early 1900's to seek work in the coal mines. Raccuglia spent his childhood in the area and attended the local parochial elementary and high schools. From 1953 to 1954 Raccuglia served in the Army. After his service to our country, he attended the local junior college and graduated in 1956. Raccuglia continued his education at the University of lllinois. He eventually left the University of lllinois for the John Marshall Law School, which enabled him to find employment and provide for his family while working toward his law degree. While in law school, Raccuglia acquired work as a law clerk for a personal injury plaintiff's trial lawyer. He had the opportunity to witness the "great trial lawyers in the personal injury area in the Cook County arena." Raccuglia considered the work opportunity to be an invaluable experience. He was able to go to the courtroom to see first-hand how the civil justice system worked and became familiar with cross examination, direct examination, interrogatories, request to produce - all of the things taught from text books in law school. After graduating from John Marshall in June of 1959, Raccuglia was admitted to the bar in November of 1959. He returned to the LaSalle Peru area to practice law. Early in his career, Raccuglia was appointed Assistant State 's Attorney and was also able to practice civil law. He spent eight years in the State's Attorney's office as a full time prosecutor in the felony division. He prosecuted between 40 and 50 major felony cases and another 15 to 20 civil cases. Raccuglia retired from the State's Attorney's office in 1968. He continues to practice law, along with three associates at his firm, as a plaintiff's personal injury lawyer in all areas of personal injury law. Raccuglia is a member of the llIinois State Bar Association (ISBA) and served on the board of Governors from 1978 until 1982. In 2003, Raccuglia was inducted to the ISBA Laureates. He is also an active member of the American Association for Justice and a charter member of the llIinois Bar Foundation.