Full Text of HR0046 103rd General Assembly
HR0046 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Larry | 4 | | Rogers Sr., who passed away on January 19, 2023; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Larry Rogers grew up on the far South Side in the | 6 | | Roseland community of Chicago; he received his education in | 7 | | Catholic schools and excelled in academics; he was accepted | 8 | | into law school after graduating college but was forced to put | 9 | | his legal career on hold due to a health issue; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Larry Rogers left law school to work three jobs | 11 | | to care for his family, including working as a respiratory | 12 | | therapist; one of his two other jobs included working at a gas | 13 | | station across the street from Comiskey Park, where he began a | 14 | | 40-year friendship with a regular customer named Joe Power, a | 15 | | young attorney who encouraged him to complete law school, | 16 | | which he did; they later formed the personal law and medical | 17 | | malpractice law firm, Power Rogers, LLP; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, During his nearly four-decade legal career, Larry | 19 | | Rogers would emerge as a mastermind in the courtroom, winning | 20 | | hundreds of millions of dollars in verdicts for victims of | 21 | | medical malpractice, motor vehicle negligence, and aviation | 22 | | accidents; in 1985, he won a $27 million product liability |
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| 1 | | verdict, the largest personal injury victory in Illinois | 2 | | history at the time, for families who had been wronged by | 3 | | Syntex, a baby formula company that sold chloride-deficient | 4 | | formula that affected the intellectual development of babies, | 5 | | shortly after the Department of Justice declined to press | 6 | | charges against the company; in 2000, he helped win a $55 | 7 | | million verdict, one of the largest in Illinois history, for a | 8 | | woman who suffered irreversible brain damage during a | 9 | | bronchoscopy exam; he paid his success forward in mentorship, | 10 | | guidance, and support of Black students and attorneys who had | 11 | | long been excluded from the legal world; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Larry Rogers previously served as the president | 13 | | of the Cook County Bar Association and was the first Black | 14 | | president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; he was | 15 | | named one of the top 500 trial lawyers in the nation; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, Larry Rogers was an avid sports fan, holding | 17 | | season tickets for the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Bears; he | 18 | | also enjoyed taking his Sea Ray sport boat out on Lake Michigan | 19 | | and occasionally to Florida or the Bahamas for vacations, | 20 | | often bringing along family, friends, and even other | 21 | | attorneys; and
| 22 | | WHEREAS, Larry Rogers was a trailblazer who served as a | 23 | | role model for generations of lawyers and helped the Black |
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| 1 | | community defend its most vulnerable members; he devoted his | 2 | | life to the Black community, his family, and the passion of | 3 | | building a more equitable justice system in the United States; | 4 | | he was generous and eager to spread joy to those he loved; | 5 | | above all, he was a dedicated and loving father and | 6 | | grandfather; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Larry Rogers is survived by his life partner, Pam | 8 | | Anderson; his children and stepchildren, Larry Jr., Dom, Anne | 9 | | Marie and Frederic; his nieces and nephews; and his | 10 | | grandchildren; therefore, be it
| 11 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 12 | | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 13 | | we mourn the passing of Larry Rogers Sr. and extend our sincere | 14 | | condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved | 15 | | him; and be it further
| 16 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 17 | | presented to the family of Larry Rogers as an expression of our | 18 | | deepest sympathy.
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