About William Wagner
William Wagner is an award-winning writer and editor who’s been at it for thirty-plus years. He has written for everything from Sports Illustrated to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, and also is the author of a book about the Chicago Cubs titled Wrigley Blues. Wagner has contributed to Super Lawyers since 2005 and has thoroughly enjoyed interviewing and profiling an array of fascinating attorneys.
Articles written by William Wagner
9/12
The dust hasn’t begun to settle on 9/11 litigationA peek through the retaining fence where the World Trade Center once stood offers few clues about the horror that day. Workmen in hardhats are plying their trades as heavy trucks roll along gravelly roadways. Passersby who didn’t know better might think this was Ground Zero for an ambitious construction project. The clues are elsewhere. Graffiti on a nearby wall reads, “Fuck you, Osama bin Laden.” St. Paul’s Chapel has been transformed into a makeshift 9/11 museum. The Ten House has …
The Supreme Thrill
Tales from the Supreme Court from five lawyers who have a second home thereThe 1927 Yankees had Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, Earle Combs and Waite Hoyt. Washington, D.C, has Seth Waxman, Nathan Lewin, Carter Phillips, Maureen Mahoney and Thomas Goldstein. The ’27 Yankees are considered the most dominant team in baseball history. The members of this team are legendary in a different way: as United States Supreme Court lawyers. Collectively, they’ve argued 150 cases before the Supreme Court, with clients ranging from U.S. presidents to governments of …
The Supreme Thrill
Six Illinois lawyers talk about the six stages of arguing before the U.S. Supreme CourtCall it the long arm of the law. In 1991, the aura of the United States Supreme Court stretched from Washington, D.C., to Chicago and gripped Christina Tchen. The up-and-coming lawyer was preparing to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court for the first time, and she quickly realized that this was an experience like no other. “About a month before the argument, I removed myself from everything else I was doing and devoted 100 percent of my time to preparation,” Tchen, now 50 and a …
The Supreme Thrill
Four Wisconsin attorneys talk about taking their cases all the way to the Supreme CourtRobert Friebert felt jittery. Christopher Kelly was downright petrified. Dan Rottier had a ball. Brady Williamson was awed by the surroundings. Arguing before the United States Supreme Court has a different effect on different people — and each of these four Wisconsin lawyers handled the daunting experience in his own way. They all agree, however, that it was the pinnacle of their careers. It was, as Williamson says, like playing in the Super Bowl. Wisconsin Super Lawyers asked …
When the Revolution Didn't Happen
John Willems went from representing unions to management, but he still preaches the same gospelThis much is certain about John Willems: His two passions in life are the arts and the law. From there, he becomes more difficult to dissect. Take his musical tastes. After learning to play the accordion at age 9 — the instrument of choice, he says, in the Polish-German neighborhood where he lived on Chicago’s South Side — Willems mastered the guitar and the piano. He’s used those skills to write and perform music ranging from folk and jazz to acid rock and punk. “I’ve played …
The Young and the Restless
It’s 9 o’clock on a Friday night, and Gina Burgin is: a) representing her firm, Richmond-based Hirschler Fleischer, at a lavish legal gala b) enjoying a candlelit light dinner with her husband, Victor Shavers c) sound asleep d) none of the above The answer is d). Burgin is on the phone with a reporter because this is the only time she can squeeze an interview into her schedule. Burgin’s high-powered career at Hirschler Fleischer is only part of what makes her days so frenzied. …
Much to Do About Something
Civil rights legend Julius Chambers continues to fight the good fightJulius Chambers is a busy man. He doesn’t have time to look back, but to humor a writer who is visiting his Charlotte law office, he stops — albeit briefly — and reflects on his career as one of the pre-eminent figures in the civil rights movement. He sits behind a desk in a sparsely decorated conference room and speaks in a soft and unassuming tone about some of his landmark legal victories. Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education in 1971. Griggs v. Duke Power Co. in …
The Regular Guy
Philip Beck’s clients include Bayer, Merck, DuPont and, oh, the president of the United StatesFor as long as Philip Beck can remember, he wanted to be a trial lawyer. He grew up watching Perry Mason and The Defenders with his dad in their suburban Chicago home, entranced by the courtroom dramas that played out each week and dreaming of someday being in the same position. That dream came true. Several decades later, images of Beck were beamed into living rooms around the country — around the world, for that matter — as he tried the mother of all cases: George Bush v. Al Gore. The …
Sleepless in St. Louis
The question needs to be asked up front: When does Michael Kahn sleep? His job as an intellectual property litigator with the high-powered St. Louis firm Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin is enough to keep him awake at night, but that’s only the beginning. Consider what else chips away at his precious time: While most people are winding down at the end of the day, Kahn, 53, is banging away at his computer. Since 1988, he has authored eight mystery novels. “Nobody has time to write a …
The Crusader
Robert Henak’s mission is to make sure no one slips through the cracksThe “Spite” House, built by a judge in 1880 to block the Lake Michigan view of a neighbor he disliked, doesn’t seem spiteful at all. Placid is more like it. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the three-story yellow-brick gem sits just off the beaten path on the east side of Milwaukee. There’s no hustle and bustle on this stretch of Prospect Avenue, unless walkers and joggers count. The “Spite” House looks out onto a lush park and the lake. One of the …
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