Tribute to a very good friend, mentor and a great lawyer
I have been Bob Will's very good friend for the past 16 very short years. In that time, Bob gave me a lifetime worth of experience, knowledge, and understanding of the law -- and life.
Bob passed away on Nov. 10.
I will never forget first meeting Bob. I was a young attorney in Chicago when I accepted a job at the Lake County courthouse. I was unfamiliar with the Lake County legal community, so my first order of business was to find out who the top lawyers were. I asked judges, clerks, bailiffs ... everybody. One name kept coming up: Bob Will.
I came to picture Bob Will as a bronzed god, 12 feet tall, carrying a trident and briefcase full of lightning bolts! As a young, single attorney, my other first order of business was to find out where the clerks, court reporters, secretaries and paralegals hung out. One place kept coming up: the Burgundy Room. One day I sat down at the B-Room bar next to this guy with a loud, booming voice, profane and opinionated, wearing blue jeans, tennis shoes and a Packer jacket. Knowing the B-Room was frequented by legal types, not country bumpkins, I discreetly asked the bartender what was with this guy. The bartender smiled and said, "Ralph, meet Bob Will."
Not thinking that this could possibly be the bronzed god I had heard so much about, I said "Nice to meet you. You know, there's a pretty famous lawyer around here by the name of Bob Will." He looked at me and boomed, "Who do you think you're talking to?" I was speechless, embarrassed and intimidated. I could only sputter: "I'm sorry Mr. Will, I didn't mean to…" Bob got the biggest grin on his face and boomed: "First of all, Mr. Will was my father, I'm Bob. Secondly , don't be sorry, let's have a drink!"
That marked the beginning of a deep friendship and my formal legal education. The first lesson Bob taught me was who is the most important person in the courtroom. He said: "It's not the judge, prosecutor, your client or witness, it's the court reporter." Hmmm. The court reporter. I figured he knew what he was talking about and wasn't going to dispute it after our dubious introduction. It wasn't long before I met Jan Mosley, Bob's girlfriend and a court reporter at the courthouse. After seeing their wonderful relationship, I knew exactly what he meant!
In law school I always imagined practicing in prestigious courthouses in places like Washington D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and the like. As part of my formal legal education, Bob certainly took me many places, though not the kind I imagined in law school. Instead, these places had names like Stateville Correctional Center, Dixon, Dwight, Rock Island, Centralia and the like! On one of our many road trips, despite my objections, Bob even made an impromptu stop at the birthplace of Ronald Reagan!
Bob took me to another place that, as a lifelong Bears fan, I never thought I would go: Green Bay. I spent a wonderful weekend in 2 feet of snow at temperatures hovering near zero! Of course, the Packers beat the Bears. Even worse, and again over my objections, Bob insisted we visit the Packer Hall of Fame!
I vividly recall a trip to Springfield with Bob and his long-time partner and protege, Tom Briscoe, for oral arguments before the Supreme Court. While preparing the day before, Bob turned to me and said, seriously: "Ralph, I need you to do something important for arguments." My heart pounded anticipating the possibility of having to directly address the Supreme Court. He said: "When those courtroom doors open, I want you to take my briefcase and go in first, set the briefcase at our table and enjoy the show." He laughed so loud! I was never so happy to carry somebody's briefcase!
Over the years, I have grown as a lawyer and person because of Bob. Bob, you will always be 12 feet tall to me!
Strathmann is a Waukegan attorney