The Bar News

Bar News Sections

Obituaries

  • September 19, 2012 | People
    Mary Catherine Taylor 1948-2012

    Taylor, Mary Catherine (nee McKerral) M. Catherine Taylor, a longtime South Suburban resident and for the past 20 years a Chicago resident, passed away on Sunday, Sept. 2. Catherine was the beloved daughter of Gordon D. and Mary M. McKerral, both deceased.

    Since 2008 she was the Associate Director for the Center for Disability & Elder Law in Chicago. This position followed 15 years of private practice most recently with the firm of Spain Spain and Varnet PC, where she focused on probate, specifically guardianship and decedents' estates, as well as estate and benefit planning for persons with disabilities and their families. She also practiced in the areas of family law and general civil litigation.

    Catherine was active in the Chicago Bar Association and served on the Probate Practice and Legal Aid Committees. She also served on the General Practice Section Council of the Illinois State Bar Association. Catherine began her legal career following a 20-year administrative career at Governor's State University in positions including Executive Assistant to the President, Affirmative Action Officer and Dean of Student Affairs, where she developed policies and programs for compliance with Federal and State statutes related to employment, education and access for persons with disabilities. She was licensed in Illinois and was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • September 19, 2012 | People
    Samuel S. Blane 1920-2012

    Samuel S. Blane of Petersburg died on Saturday, September 8, 2012 at Kindred Hospital in Springfield at the age of 92 years.

    Mr. Blane, a native of Petersburg, was born January 30, 1920, a son of Frank E. and Floss (Shepherd) Blane. He graduated from Knox College immediately prior to World War II and after the war attended and graduated from the University of Illinois Law School. He practiced law in Petersburg for more than 60 years; from 1948 forward.

    After law school, he was admitted to the Bar in 1948 and thereafter became the 3rd generation of his family of lawyers to practice in Petersburg. It started with his grandfather, Captain H.S. Blane, whose career commenced in 1867 until 1902; then his father, Frank E. Blane, whose law practice started in 1892 until 1941.

    He received the Chicago Tribune Award for Military Proficiency in 1942. A veteran of the Pacific Theatre from World War II, he was commissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force with a rank of Major when discharged in 1946. A lifetime member of VFW Post #6871 and a life member of American Legion Post #198 from which in 2007 he achieved 60 years status.

    In 1949 in Petersburg he married Greta Schoone, a local resident, and they had one son and two daughters.

    Active in many civic and community affairs, he also served his church, Petersburg First Christian Church, as both Elder and Trustee.

  • September 19, 2012 | People
    John William Gosselin 1934-2012

    John William Gosselin, 78, died Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012, at his home in Batavia. He was born Feb. 20, 1934, in Aurora, to John Stephen Gosselin and Betty Gosselin (nee Willoughby).

    He graduated from West Aurora High School in 1952 and from Beloit College in 1956, where he was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. He received the degree of Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago in 1959.

    Mr. Gosselin was an attorney in the Batavia law firm of Benson, Mair and Gosselin and was the city attorney of Batavia for many years. He was a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, the Kane County Bar Association and the Batavia Moose Lodge.

    He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Judith Gosselin (nee Wheeler); his four children, Kathleen Gosselin (Arnold Kalnins), Gabrielle Gosselin Clai (Rudy), John W. Gosselin and Thomas Gosselin (Stephanie); and his grandchildren, Wilson Willoughby Gosselin, Margaret Rose Gosselin and Frances Mae Gosselin.

    He was preceded in death by his parents; his brother, Charles Gosselin; and his sister, Susan Gosselin Preihs.

    Per his request, there will be no visitation. Burial will be private.

    Memorials may be directed to Provena Hospice, 799 S. McLean Boulevard, Suite 101, Elgin, IL 60123.

  • September 10, 2012 | People
    Guy McDowell Lahr, III 1944-2012

    Guy McDowell Lahr, III, 67, of Springfield, passed away at 7:04 p.m.

  • September 6, 2012 | People
    Chester Charlton McCullough, Jr. 1917-2012

    Chester Charlton McCullough, Jr., who went to be with his Lord Sunday, August 19th, at age 95 years, 5 months, was a resident of River Forest, Illinois, from 1953 to 2012. A long-time member of First Presbyterian Church of River Forest, he served as Deacon and Elder and in several other capacities. Mr. McCullough was born March 18, 1917, in the city of Chicago, son of Chester C. and Una (McFarland) McCullough. He attended the Harvard School for Boys, Beloit College (B.A., 1939), Chicago Kent College of Law (LL.B., 1947, and J.D., 1948), and the University of Chicago (MBA, 1953). While at Beloit College, Beloit, Wisconsin, he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa; in law school, at Kent, he worked on the Law Review; at the University of Chicago, he was elected to Beta Gamma Sigma.

    In 1942, Mr. McCullough married Jean Lenore Coffman. She passed away in 1986. Their two children, Dr. Celia M. (Gary Kaplan) and Major Daniel C. (Sue) survive.

    Mr. McCullough served in World War II (Private to Captain), training with the 63rd Infantry Division, in the U. S., and then serving with the 26th Infantry Division in Europe; after V. E. Day, he was assigned to Military Government of Germany.  Recalled for the Korean Conflict, he served as a Civil Affairs Officer in Korea.

    In 1939, Mr. McCullough went to work for Chicago Title and Trust Company as a Junior Clerk.  He was elected Vice President of that company in 1957.  In 1964, he transferred to the subsidiary, Chicago Title Insurance Company, from which he retired in 1982, as Senior Vice President and Secretary.

  • August 30, 2012 | People
    Maury Kravitz passes away

    Maury Kravitz was a lawyer, a gold trader and a student of history, but he was best known for his fascination with 13th century Mongolian leader Genghis Khan, a fascination that led to four expeditions in search of the emperor's grave site in Mongolia.

    "I got a call in early 1995 … about some cockamamie scheme to look for a burial site in Mongolia of Genghis Khan," said John Woods, a professor of history at the University of Chicago, adding that the call led to a lunch with Mr. Kravitz.

    "Although the scheme seemed strange, he was so magnetic that I couldn't turn away," said Woods, who soon got involved in an effort to raise funds for an expedition. Though that early effort didn't raise any money, Mr. Kravitz by 2000 had convinced a small group of investors to put $1.2 million into funding expeditions over four summers.

    The expedition located a grave site in Mongolia with artifacts from Genghis Khan's time, Woods said. But the professor also said he didn't know if it is "the right place." Woods said that if time, money and the political climate had allowed, there were other likely sites to explore.

    Mr. Kravitz, 80, died of complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Tuesday, July 31, in Highland Park Hospital, according to his wife, Mona. He had lived in Highland Park for more than 40 years.

  • August 30, 2012 | People
    Eugene C. Shutts 1917-2012

    Eugene Coggeshall Shutts, 95, passed away Sunday August 12, 2012 at Provena St. Joseph Medical Center. He was born May 28, 1917 to Mildred and Irving Shutts.

    He attended the Joliet Public Schools and graduated from Joliet Township High School in 1935. He attended Joliet Junior College and the University of Michigan. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1939 and the University of Michigan Law School in 1942.

    Eugene served with the United States Army in Africa in the Middle East from 1942 to 1946. He met his wife, Regine, in Casablanca, French Morocco in 1946. They married February 15, 1947 in Joliet.

    Eugene practiced law in Joliet from 1946 until his death. He was a member of Phi Kappa Psi, Rotary Club of Joliet, the Propeller Club, the American Legion, Will County Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, St. Edward and Christ Episcopal Church and the Estate Planning Council of Will County. He also served on the Vestry of Christ Episcopal Church and the Executive Board of the Rainbow Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

    He was preceded in death by his wife of 62 years Regine Dumas Shutts; parents Mildred and Irving Shutts. Survived by his son, Robert (Diane) Shutts; granddaughters, Sara Elizabeth (John) and Cynthia Diane; great-granddaughter, Julia Katherine; great-grandson, David Thomas.

    In lieu of flowers memorials to St. Edward and Christ Episcopal Church or Silver Cross Hospital would be appreciated.

  • August 30, 2012 | People
    Alexander P. Misheff passes away

    Alexander P. Misheff, a dean of the Trust Administration Bar of Chicago, passed away suddenly Aug. 5 at age 78.

    His life was an example of American bootstrap mobility, born to immigrant parents from eastern Europe during the depression, growing up in the small town of Red Wing, Minn., and graduating from Harvard College and Harvard Law School. After serving in the Army, he began his legal career in Chicago in the trust department of Continental Bank, eventually advancing to head the department.

    When Continental sold its trust business, he established a private law practice, which he continued until shortly before his death. A significant contributor to his profession, he spent many years on bar association committees, chairing the Chicago Bar Association Trust Committee, writing articles for professional publications and representing the American Bankers Association in drafting a Uniform State Law proposal on Fiduciary Principles of Trusts.

    Reflecting his efforts to promote prudence and stem the erosion of traditional trust principles, he continually opposed efforts by state legislatures in recent years to encourage trust departments "to mend their stodgy ways and invest more in the stock market." He also criticized proposals to change the traditional rules of trust accounting.

  • August 23, 2012 | People
    Ben W. Heineman Sr. 1914-2012

    Ben W. Heineman Sr., of Chicago, died on August 5 at age 98. He was revered as a giant of his generationa brilliant lawyer, a far-sighted businessman, an adviser to presidents, governors and mayors, a prominent Chicago leader, a deeply committed supporter of opera and symphony, an influential trustee of the University of Chicago, and a world-class collector of contemporary glass.

    These and many other accomplishments reflected a person of extraordinary character, integrity and, independence, whose life truly deserved the phrases "business statesman" and "Renaissance man." He was a warm, witty, wise and caring counselor to many and, ultimately, an exemplary citizen of his city, his state, and his country.

    Ben was born in Wausau, Wisconsin, on February 10, 1914, six months before the start of World War I, the son of Walter Benjamin and Elsie Brunswick Heineman. After his family lost all its money in 1929, he attended the University of Michigan from 1930 to 1933 and then Northwestern Law School, graduating in 1936 at the top of his class and as the editor of the law review. His legal career spanned the next 20 years. He was a leading corporate lawyer in Chicago.

  • August 23, 2012 | People
    William C. Gracik 1961-2012

    William C. Gracik of Algonqui, 51, passed away on Aug. 9 in Barrington following a lengthy illness. Bill was born Jan. 2, 1961, in Detroit, Mich., the son of Francis and Barbara (nee Miller) Gracik.

    He graduated from Michigan State University with a business degree and in 1992 from John Marshall Law School. He had practiced law in the area for a number of years and in 2005 opened his own law firm in Algonquin.

    He was a loving father, always positive and upbeat and enjoyed learning about military history.

    Bill is survived by his children, Nichole Marie, William Charles Jr., Jacob Wilson and Jessica Ann and their mother, Carolyn Gracik, all of Algonquin; his parents, Francis and Barbara Gracik of Tawas, Mich.; his siblings, Mary (John) Leatherman of Shepherd, Mich., Jack (Elise) Gracik of Elk River, Minn., David (Julie) Gracik of Sterling Heights, Mich., Glenn (Gina) Gracik of North Pole, Alaska, Theresa Gracik of Ann Arbor, Mich., Judy (Mike) Whalen of Spring Lake, Mich., Steve (Lisa) Gracik of Elk River, Minn. and Sue (Denny) Wyman of Dearborn, Mich.

    n lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Light of Christ Lutheran Church, 100 Hanson Road, Algonquin. For more information, please call the funeral home at 847-515-8772 or online condolences can be directed to www.defiorejorgensen.com.