It is with great sadness that I share the news that our dear friend Jay Erens passed away last Friday afternoon. As many of you know, Jay had a prolific legal career of over 65 years. Jay attended Harvard Law School and counted Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia as friends and classmates. After graduating in 1959, Jay clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harlan. He then subsequently founded and ran a successful Chicago boutique firm for many years (Levy & Erens) before joining Hopkins & Sutter in the late eighties and finally Foley & Lardner as part of the Hopkins merger in 2001.
Jay was truly one of a kind and the last of his kind. Everyone who came in contact with Jay recognized that he was a towering intellect. He was one of the last true “generalists” in major law firm practice, with expertise in corporate representation, civil litigation, real estate, taxation, securities, banking, secured lending, estate planning, and bankruptcy and insolvency. There was almost no legal problem in any field of law that Jay could not penetrate to its core and solve for his clients.
With his powerful mind came enormous confidence. Although Jay would bring in specialists at the firm to assist, his knowledge was so deep, and his preparation so thorough, that he could work with the specialists as if he was a member of their practice groups. Colleagues quickly learned that they did not have the luxury of assuming that Jay would simply accept their conclusions. Once he understood a legal issue, Jay was relentless in the defense of his legal positions.
Jay’s attention to detail was legendary, and he didn’t worry about annoying opposing counsel on lengthy negotiations picking apart a draft document in order to produce an agreement that was perfectly clear and concise and supported his client’s needs. Jay’s clients were always well represented and, consequently, very loyal to him. For many of those clients, Jay was more than just an attorney; he was a trusted advisor and developed strong personal relationships with many of them.
Jay had an immense love for the law. He demanded rigorous analysis and clarity of expression. He permitted no shortcuts, found every typo or grammar mistake, and deferred to no experts. Those of us who had the privilege of working with Jay were always the better for it. One cannot help but think that with his extraordinary mind, Jay must have noticed how overmatched everyone else was. Yet Jay was never anything less than completely respectful of everyone he worked with. He was a pleasure to work with and learn from.
Simply stated, Jay made everyone who worked with him a better lawyer. That is his legacy to the Firm.
The family held private services. If you would like to reach out to Jay’s wife Patrice or his son Cameron, please contact Jay’s assistant Eileen Farrell (copied here) and she can provide you with their information. We have been staying in close touch with Jay’s family to share our support and condolences and appreciate you keeping them in your thoughts during this difficult time. Jay was going to turn 91 years old in a couple of weeks.
And a special note of appreciation to Wayne Osoba, John Palmer and Steve Gerenraich in helping prepare this wonderful tribute to Jay.
Frank
