William Neukom, former ABA president with influence ‘from boardrooms to ballparks to courtrooms,’ dies at 83

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William Neukom, former ABA president with affect ‘from boardrooms to ballparks to courtrooms,’ dies at 83

By Debra Cassens Weiss

July 17, 2025, 11:22 am CDT

Former ABA President William H. “Invoice” Neukom, previously the chief lawyer for Microsoft and the ex-CEO of the San Francisco Giants, has died on the age of 83.

Neukom, identified for the bow ties he wore, served as president of the American Bar Affiliation for the 2007 to 2008 time period. Throughout his presidency, Neukom established the ABA Fee on Sexual Orientation and Gender Id and arranged an ABA members’ march on Washington, D.C., to assist protesting Pakistani attorneys in search of to reinstate the rule of regulation.

Neukom was additionally a retired companion at Okay&L Gates and the co-founder and chief govt officer of the World Justice Undertaking, a corporation that promotes the rule of regulation. He and his youngsters based the Neukom Household Basis, which helps nonprofits within the fields of schooling, the surroundings, human providers, justice and public well being.

“If you happen to don’t have the rule of regulation, you possibly can’t have human rights,” Neukom instructed the ABA Journal in 2020 when he gained the ABA Medal, the affiliation’s highest honor. “If you happen to don’t have the rule of regulation, you possibly can’t have open, participatory governments. If you happen to don’t have the rule of regulation, you possibly can’t have an inclusive economic system. And should you don’t have the rule of regulation, you possibly can’t have a peaceable existence.”

Former ABA President Bob Carlson known as Neukom “a real lawyer chief…He devoted his time, treasure and appreciable expertise to creating the world a extra simply place.”

Present ABA President William R. Bay stated that Neukom confirmed that the regulation is a calling rooted in service to others and a dedication to strengthen justice and freedom.

“From boardrooms to ballparks to courtrooms, Invoice’s integrity and imaginative and prescient had been deeply influential throughout the globe,” Bay stated.

Neukom served the ABA in a number of capacities. He was chair of the ABA Younger Attorneys Division, chair of the Fund for Justice and Schooling, and chair of an ABA process drive to advance the rule of regulation. He was affiliation secretary and a member of the Board of Governors and the Home of Delegates. He’s additionally a former member of the ABA Journal Board of Editors.

Based on the ABA, Neukom began his profession with a various follow that handled civil rights instances and illustration of group organizations. He was devoted to the significance of schooling and along with his work with Stanford, additionally was a trustee emeritus of College of Puget Sound and Dartmouth School, his undergraduate alma mater, the place he served as chair of the board from 2004 to 2007

Neukom lived in Seattle along with his spouse Sally, in keeping with Okay&L Gates. Collectively that they had 5 youngsters and 16 grandchildren.

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