A fund to protect the civil justice system.

The Robert L. Habush ATLA Endowment was created to fund programs that will create public understanding and provide research and ideas to promote the civil justice system in the 21st century. The Endowment functions as a grant-making foundation with the mission to preserve and protect the civil justice system and individual rights. It does this by providing consistent public education and research to promote informed public dialogue on, understanding of, and appreciation for the civil justice system. Additionally, the Endowment sponsors prestigious education programs and publications for judges and law professors and funds innovative scholarship and research on the civil justice system and individual rights. These issues are addressed through four institutes: the Public Education Institute, the Judicial Institute, the Law School Institute, and the Research Institute.

TRIAL is proud to feature profiles of ATLA members who have completely fulfilled their commitment to the Endowment. The next three of the series appear on the following pages. For a complete list of Endowment Profiles, please see the 2006-07 ATLA Membership Directory.

For more information, please call [phone], ext. 544, or send a message to [e-mail].

Larry Stewart

Larry Stewart is the founder and president of Stewart Tilghman Fox & Bianchi in Miami, Florida. He earned a B.A. and a J.D. with honors from the University of Florida. Law school honors included being a member of the Florida Blue Key, the law review, the moot court team, and the Order of the Coif.

He has practiced law for over 42 years, principally on behalf of plaintiffs. His practice has focused on catastrophic injuries, particularly those of victims of defective products and medical malpractice.

From October 2001 until October 2002, Stewart served as president and CEO of Trial Lawyers Care, Inc., where he oversaw the creation of and directed the largest pro bono program in history, which delivered free legal services to thousands of September 11 victims and their families.

Stewart served as ATLA's president in 1994-1995 and was on its executive committee for six years and its board of governors for 11 years. Within ATLA, he served in a number of capacities, ranging from continuing legal education (National College of Advocacy Board of Trustees, 1989-1993) to ethics (Ethical Conduct Committee, 1988-1989; and chair, Ethics Committee 1989-1990, where he led the drafting and implementation of ATLA's Code of Conduct) to section and litigation group organization and development (chair, Ad Hoc Committee on Section Roles, 1989-1990; and cochair, Section and Litigation Group Coordinating Council, 1992-1993). He has also served as chair of ATLA PAC, cochair of the ATLA Endowment Campaign Committee, cochair of the ATLA's List Committee, president of the Roscoe Pound Institute (1999-2001), and cochair of the Public Affairs Committee.

As a result of his accomplishments as a trial lawyer, Stewart has been selected for membership in all five of the leading national professional trial lawyer organizations: the American College of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Trial Advocates, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the International Society of Barristers, and the Inner Circle of Advocates. He is also listed in Best Lawyers in America.

Stewart has been honored by his peers on numerous occasions. In 2002, he received the ATLA Champion of Justice Award. In 1995, he received the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers (AFTL) Perry Nichols Award; and in 1993, he received the Florida Trial Lawyer of the Year award from the Florida chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates. In 2002, he received an ATLA Special Pro Bono Award, and he has received an ATLA Wiedemann & Wysocki Citation of Excellence five times (1990, 1992, 1999, 2003, and 2004). In 1994, he received the ATLA New Lawyers Section Joe Tonahill Award. He also received the AFTL President's Award in 1980 and the AFTL A.J. Cone Lifetime Achievement Award in 1992. And in 1983 and 1989, Trial Lawyers for Public Justice selected him for honorable mention as Trial Lawyer of the Year. Mr. Stewart currently serves as president of the ATLA Endowment.

Twiggs, Beskind, Strickland & Rabenau, P.A.

Led by former ATLA President Howard Twiggs, and with a 50-year history of representing plaintiffs, Twiggs, Beskind, Strickland & Rabenau success comes from its commitment to the three Rs: relationships, responsibilities, and re-suits. Its most important relationships are with the courageous people its lawyers represent and the talented referring lawyers from around the country who are often cocounsel. The key responsibility to its clients and referring attorneys is providing the highest quality legal service.

All its partners are listed in Best Lawyers in America. All have been recognized within ATLA for their knowledge and abilities: Howard Twiggs as president; Don Beskind as cochair of the National College of Advocacy; and Don Strickland, Karen Rabenau, and Jay Trehy as presenters of continuing legal education programs and authors of articles. Finally, results speak for themselves. The firm has obtained very significant verdicts for the financially devastated, physically disabled, and psychologically scarred clients it represents.

John Eddie Williams Jr.

John Eddie Williams Jr., a native of Houston, is the managing partner of Williams Bailey Law Firm, L.L.P. He graduated cum laude with a bachelor of business administration degree from Baylor University, then entered Baylor School of Law, where he graduated first in his class.

Williams was reared in a union family. His grandfather was a union longshoreman, and his father was a leader in the South Atlantic and Gulf Coast Longshoreman's Union for many years. Williams remains a strong advocate of workers and organized labor, representing members and their causes at every opportunity.

Williams is board-certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in personal injury trial law. He has specialized in representing plaintiffs in mass tort cases involving asbestos, silicosis, benzene, fen-phen, and toxic waste exposure. He represented the state of Texas in its lawsuit against the tobacco industry, resulting in the largest settlement in U.S. history.

His professional legal affiliations also include the Houston and American bar associations, the State Bar of Texas, and ATLA. Williams is a past president of the Houston Trial Lawyers Association, the Houston Trial Lawyers Foundation, and the Texas Trial Lawyers Association. Williams also was the 2002 recipient of Baylor University's Lawyer of the Year award.

Williams is married to the former Sheridan Clark.