HR0173 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0173 LRB098 11390 MST 43136 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to recognize Robert A. "Bob" Clifford on being named "Person of the Year 2012" by Chicago Lawyer magazine; and

WHEREAS, Bob Clifford is the founder of Clifford Law Offices, a Chicago-based firm serving clients with complex personal injury, aviation, whistleblower, and commercial legal needs; and

WHEREAS, Bob Clifford is the 2012 president of the Chicago Bar Association; he is past president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and of the Chicago Inn of Court; he was the chair of the Section on Litigation for the American Bar Association (2001-2002), and is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyer, the National Judicial College, the American Judicature Society (Illinois Committee For Judicial Independence) and the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Civility; and

WHEREAS, During his legal career, Bob Clifford represented property damage claims related to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, championed the legal doctrine of "apparent agency" allowing plaintiffs to sue hospitals that contracted (non-employee) physicians to perform surgeries, and represented virtuoso violinist Rachel Barton against METRA; and

WHEREAS, Bob Clifford has a history of philanthropy; he endows the Robert A. Clifford Chair on Tort Law and Social Policy and the Clifford Symposium on Tort Law and Social Policy at DePaul University College of Law; he is a trustee of the Naples Children and Education Foundation (NCEF) and chaired their Winter Wine Festival in 2012, raising more than $12 million for needy children; and

WHEREAS, Bob Clifford was born in Chicago and grew up in a south side neighborhood called "Mudville", so called because it was the last neighborhood in the city to get paved streets; he was the first in his family to go to college, graduating from DePaul University with a bachelor of arts in 1973 and a juris doctorate in 1976; he has been married to Joan for 39 years and they have 2 daughters, Erin and Tracy; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize and honor Bob Clifford on being named "Person of the Year 2012" by Chicago Lawyer magazine; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Bob Clifford as an expression of our esteem and respect.