Obituaries
William Neukom, former ABA president with affect ‘from boardrooms to ballparks to courtrooms,’ dies at 83
July 17, 2025, 11:22 am CDT
William H. “Invoice” Neukom (ABA Photograph)
Former ABA President William H. “Invoice” Neukom, previously the chief lawyer for Microsoft and the ex-CEO of the San Francisco Giants, has died on the age of 83.
Neukom, identified for the bow ties he wore, served as president of the American Bar Affiliation for the 2007 to 2008 time period. Throughout his presidency, Neukom established the ABA Fee on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identification and arranged an ABA members’ march on Washington, D.C., to help protesting Pakistani attorneys searching for to reinstate the rule of regulation.
Neukom was additionally a retired companion at Ok&L Gates and the co-founder and chief government officer of the World Justice Mission, a company that promotes the rule of regulation. He and his kids based the Neukom Household Basis, which helps nonprofits within the fields of schooling, the surroundings, human companies, justice and public well being.
“For those who don’t have the rule of regulation, you’ll be able to’t have human rights,” Neukom advised the ABA Journal in 2020 when he gained the ABA Medal, the affiliation’s highest honor. “For those who don’t have the rule of regulation, you’ll be able to’t have open, participatory governments. For those who don’t have the rule of regulation, you’ll be able to’t have an inclusive economic system. And when you don’t have the rule of regulation, you’ll be able to’t have a peaceable existence.”
Former ABA President Bob Carlson referred to as Neukom “a real lawyer chief…He devoted his time, treasure and appreciable expertise to creating the world a extra simply place.”
Present ABA President William R. Bay stated that Neukom confirmed that the regulation is a calling rooted in service to others and a dedication to strengthen justice and freedom.
“From boardrooms to ballparks to courtrooms, Invoice’s integrity and imaginative and prescient had been deeply influential throughout the globe,” Bay stated.
Neukom served the ABA in a number of capacities. He was chair of the ABA Younger Attorneys Division, chair of the Fund for Justice and Training, and chair of an ABA process drive to advance the rule of regulation. He was affiliation secretary and a member of the Board of Governors and the Home of Delegates. He’s additionally a former member of the ABA Journal Board of Editors.
In accordance with the ABA, Neukom began his profession with a various follow that handled civil rights instances and illustration of group organizations. He was devoted to the significance of schooling and along with his work with Stanford, additionally was a trustee emeritus of College of Puget Sound and Dartmouth School, his undergraduate alma mater, the place he served as chair of the board from 2004 to 2007
Neukom lived in Seattle together with his spouse Sally, based on Ok&L Gates. Collectively they’d 5 kids and 16 grandchildren.
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