Municipal lawyer helped abused, neglected children

Day in and day out, attorney John Noble dealt with the minutiae of municipal law.

As attorney for the city of Batavia, and counsel for several other governments, he wrote annexation agreements, reviewed and perfected proposed ordinances and gave legal advice to elected officials. He also practiced real estate and estate law.

But somehow, about 11 years into his legal career, a friend persuaded Noble to volunteer his legal abilities in a far different way — protecting abused and neglected children. Noble joined Court Appointed Special Advocates of Kane County, a child advocacy group that represents those children’s interests in court. He eventually served seven years on the CASA board of directors.

Noble, who stepped down from the Batavia post in February, died Saturday at his St. Charles home. He was 70. He had been ill for several years with emphysema.

“He’s just given an exceptional amount of time to the program,” said Kathy Fergason, a case management coordinator for CASA, in an interview for a 2003 Daily Herald story about Noble.

In one case, Noble donated his time for a weeklong trial. He was one of about 40 other attorneys who helped advocates assigned to cases deal with concerns about the children.

“They are the true victims in those cases,” Noble said in the 2003 story.

And while the work could be frustrating, the children needed someone to stick up for them in court, he said.

“That’s why I do it, because someone needs to be in there doing these things,” said Noble.

Noble required the use of supplemental oxygen in recent years, and took a medical leave at one point. But he continued his work as Batavia’s city attorney, a position he took in 1999, even if that meant working from home. Batavia Mayor Jeff Schielke praised Noble’s ability to keep Batavia out of legal trouble, by his attention to detail. Noble was adamant and meticulous in looking for potential problems, Schielke said, whether it was an incorrect land survey on a 150-year-old property being redeveloped downtown, a liquor law violation being adjudicated by the mayor, or coming up with the system the city uses to judge building code violations. His most recent big project was writing the proposed annexation agreement for a 470-acre parcel of Mooseheart land.

“He was deeply committed to his job as city attorney,” Schielke said. “He kept Batavia on very strong ground.”

Noble became a lawyer in 1981 after graduating from John Marshall Law School.

A memorial gathering will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. Friday at Wildwood Restaurant in Geneva. Instead of flowers, his family has requested memorial contributions be made to CASA of Kane County, 100 S. Third St., Suite 460, Geneva, 60134.