Judge: Aurora attorney's estate not entitled to third of settlement
A Kane County judge has dismissed a lawsuit from the estate of legendary attorney William C. Murphy against his old firm in which his heirs argued they deserved one-third of a case settled more than six months after his death in late 1996.
Relatives of Murphy, who died at age 96 on Nov. 25, 1996, argued that an agreement between Murphy and the firm that was renewed each year since 2004 calling for him to receive 33.3 percent of any case settlement or jury award, still applied to a case that was settled in summer 2017.
Before his death, Murphy wrote a letter to his son in February 2016, explaining his interest in two cases that he had referred to the Aurora firm of Kinnally & Flaherty. However, the agreement stated it would expire two months after Murphy's death.
According to the lawsuit and exhibits, the firm offered Murphy's heirs $150,000 in August 2017 out of "admiration and respect" for Murphy after a confidential settlement was reached in a lawsuit by Terry and Amy Seyller against the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad.
Murphy's heirs argued in the breach of contract lawsuit that they were supposed to receive much more than that under the 33.3 percent specified in the agreement.
In a ruling late last week, Judge David Akemann ruled in favor of Kinnally and Flaherty.
"The court finds the terms of the of counsel agreement are not ambiguous," the judge wrote. "The firm has no obligation to pay the estate of William C. Murphy any amounts collected under the Seyller case or in connection with any other matter in which fees were collected after Jan. 31, 2017, pursuant to the expressed terms of the agreement."
Patrick Kinnally, who last month argued to Akemann that the suit had no basis, did not return a phone message.
During his 68-year legal career, Murphy represented a variety of clients and some of his cases set legal precedents.
In the 1950s, he represented a family whose children were injured in a Kaneland Community School District bus fire. The state's Supreme Court eventually ruled to end "sovereign immunity," allowing governments to be held liable for negligence by their employees or agents.