lawyer who represented karen silkwood

by Eduardo Reichel 8 min read

Gerry Spence

Who are the attorneys for the Silkwood estate?

Gerry Spence was the chief attorney for the estate, other key attorneys were Daniel Sheehan, Arthur Angel and James Ikard. William Paul was the chief attorney for Kerr-McGee. The estate presented evidence that the autopsy proved Silkwood was contaminated with plutonium at her death.

Who is Karen Silkwood?

Karen Gay Silkwood was born in Longview, Texas, the daughter of Merle ( née Biggs; 1926–2014) and William Silkwood (1924-2004), and raised in Nederland, Texas. She had two sisters, Linda and Rosemary.

Did the Justice Department cover up the Silkwood scandal?

Then the top executive of the company that employed Silkwood interfered with a congressional reopening of the case, and the Justice Department joined in hamstringing that inquiry. In the opinion of a congressional investigator, the official handling of the case amounted to a cover-up.

Who was the FBI agent who investigated the Silkwood case?

Her good friend Larry Olson was the FBI agent who investigated Silkwood’s death. L arry Olson, 44 years old, a tall, fair-haired 15-year FBI veteran with no sign of a paunch, gave scant notice to Silk-wood’s accident when he first read about it in the local papers.

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Who did Gerry Spence represent?

Gerry Spence is widely recognized as one of the greatest trial lawyers of all time. He has spent his lifetime representing the poor, the injured, the forgotten and the damned against what he calls “the new slave master,†a combine of mammoth corporations and gargantuan government.

Where is Gerry Spence now?

After winning the Fieger acquittal in 2008, Spence told jurors, "This is my last case. I will be 80 in January, and it's time for me to quit, to put down the sword." In 2010, Spence was still listed as an active partner in the Spence Law Firm, located in Jackson, Wyoming, and continues to make public appearances.

Who is the greatest lawyer of all time?

Four Famous Lawyers in History Every Attorney Should KnowJoe Jamail (aka King of Torts) During his time, Joe Jamail was the richest attorney in the United States and some would argue one of the most famous prosecutors to litigate. ... Abraham Lincoln (aka Honest Abe) ... Clarence Darrow. ... Mary Jo White.

Why is Gerry Spence famous?

Legendary Trial Lawyer Gerry Spence is a legend among the trial bar as one of the greatest trial lawyers of our times. His civil practice and defense of those charged with crimes has gained him an international reputation for his high profile cases and record results for the poor, the injured and the damned.

Does Gerry Spence have any children?

(a chemist) and Esther Sophie (a homemaker; maiden name, Pfleeger) Spence; married Anna Wilson, June 20, 1947 (divorced, 1969); married LaNelle Hampton Peterson Hawks (a designer), November 18, 1969; children: (first marriage) Kip, Kerry Spence Suendermann, Kent, Katy; Christopher Peterson Hawks, Brents Jefferson Hawks ...

Who is Gerry Spence married to?

Imaging SpenceGerry Spence / Spouse

Is Kim Kardashian a lawyer?

While Kim Kardashian has yet to officially become a lawyer, the reality star passed the baby bar exam in December of 2021.

Who is the most famous advocate?

A: While it is difficult to pick the one best lawyer, given below are some of the most famous lawyers in India:Ram Jethmalani.Soli Sorabjee.Fali S Nariman.Mukul Rohtagi.Ashok Desai.

What type of lawyer gets paid most?

Some of the highest-paid lawyers are:Medical Lawyers – Average $138,431. Medical lawyers make one of the highest median wages in the legal field. ... Intellectual Property Attorneys – Average $128,913. ... Trial Attorneys – Average $97,158. ... Tax Attorneys – Average $101,204. ... Corporate Lawyers – $116,361.

Did Gerry Spence lose a case?

Mr. Spence did not lose a civil case from 1969 - 2010, and he has never lost a criminal case. Mr. Spence earned his law degree from the University of Wyoming Law School, graduating cum laude in 1952.

Who has argued the most Supreme Court cases?

Paul ClementPaul Clement argued the most times with 30 total arguments. Neal Katyal was second with 21 arguments. Jeffrey Fisher had the third most with 18 arguments and Kannon Shanmugam had the fourth most with 15 arguments.

Do celebrities have personal lawyers?

They're the lawyers to the stars – and there are many. The highest-profile legal eagles, like Mark Geragos and the late Johnnie Cochran, have become TV celebrities unto themselves. But some of the busiest celeb lawyers in town these days are non-household names.

How old is Gerry Spence?

93 years (January 8, 1929)Gerry Spence / Age

How do you argue and win every time quotes?

Preview — How to Argue and Win Every Time by Gerry Spence. “I would rather have a mind opened by wonder than one closed by belief.” “The old saw that "sticks and stones can break my bones but words will never harm me" does not, in fact, hold true.”

Overview

Karen Gay Silkwood (February 19, 1946 – November 13, 1974) was an American chemical technician and labor union activist known for raising concerns about corporate practices related to health and safety in a nuclear facility.
She worked at the Kerr-McGee Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site in Oklahoma, making plutonium pellets, and became the first woman on the union's negotiat…

Family

Karen Gay Silkwood was born in Longview, Texas, and raised in Nederland, Texas. She had two sisters, Linda and Rosemary. She attended Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. In 1965, she married William Meadows, an oil pipeline worker, with whom she had three children. Following the couple's bankruptcy due to Meadows' overspending, and in the face of Meadows' refusal to end an extramarital affair, Silkwood left him in 1972 and moved to Oklahoma City, where she briefly wor…

Union activities

After being hired at the Kerr-McGee Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site plant near Crescent, Oklahoma, in 1972, Silkwood joined the local Oil, Chemical & Atomic Workers Union and took part in a strike at the plant. After the strike ended, she was elected to the union's bargaining committee, the first woman to achieve that position at the Kerr-McGee plant. She was assigned to investigate health and safety issues. She discovered what she believed to be numerous violations of health regulat…

Death

Silkwood said she had assembled documentation for her claims, including company papers. She decided to go public with this evidence, and contacted David Burnham, a New York Times journalist, who was interested in her story. On November 13, 1974, Silkwood left a union meeting at the Hub cafe in Crescent. Another attendee of that meeting later testified that Silkwood had a binder and a packet of documents with her at the cafe. Silkwood got into her Honda Civic and headed alone fo…

Silkwood vs. Kerr-McGee

Silkwood's father Bill and her children filed a lawsuit against Kerr-McGee for negligence on behalf of her estate. The trial was held in 1979 and lasted ten months, the longest up to that point in Oklahoma history. Gerry Spence was the chief attorney for the estate, other key attorneys were Daniel Sheehan, Arthur Angel and James Ikard. William Paul was the chief attorney for Kerr-McGee. The estate presented evidence that the autopsy proved Silkwood was contaminated wit…

Representation in other media

According to Richard L. Rashke's book, The Killing of Karen Silkwood (2000), officials investigating Silkwood's death and Kerr-McGee's operations received death threats. One of the investigators disappeared under mysterious circumstances. One of the witnesses committed suicide shortly before she was to testify against the Kerr-McGee Corporation about the alleged happenings at the plant. Rashke wrote that the Silkwood family's legal team were followed, threatened with violenc…

See also

• The Christic Institute
• Hilda Murrell
• Juanita Nielsen
• Clarence Lushbaugh
• List of nuclear whistleblowers

Further reading

• Annas JD MPH, George J. (May 1984). "The Case of Karen Silkwood". American Journal of Public Health. American Public Health Association. 74 (5): 516–518. doi:10.2105/ajph.74.5.516. PMC 1651625. PMID 6369995.
• Brown, Bruce. "The Karen Silkwood Story: An Unexpected Twist At The End..." astonisher.com. BF Communications Inc. Archived from the original on May 4, 2017. Retrieved August 28, 2017.

Overview

Gerald Leonard Spence (born January 8, 1929) is a semi-retired American trial lawyer. He is a member of the American Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame. Spence has never lost a criminal case either as a prosecutor or a defense attorney, and has not lost a civil case since 1969.

High-profile cases

Spence gained attention for the Karen Silkwood case. Karen Silkwood was a chemical technician at the Kerr-McGee plutonium-production plant, where she became an activist and vocal critic of plant safety, also known as a whistleblower. On November 13, 1974, Silkwood died in a one-car crash under suspicious circumstances after reportedly gathering evidence for her union. Spence represented Silkwood's father and children, who charged that Kerr-McGee was responsible for e…

Background

Spence graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1949 and from the University of Wyoming College of Law in 1952. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in May 1990. He started his career in Riverton, Wyoming, and later became a successful defense attorney for the insurance industry. Years later, Spence said he "saw the light" and became committed to representing people instead of corporations, insurance companies, banks, or "big business".

Tort reform activism

During the election season of 2004, Spence, a vocal opponent of tort reform, crisscrossed his native Wyoming spearheading a series of self-funded town hall-style meetings to inform voters of an upcoming ballot measure, Constitutional Amendment D, which would have limited Wyoming citizens' ability to recover compensation if injured by medical malpractice. The ballot measure failed, with a 50.3% "No" vote.

Public interest and television work

For many years, Spence has lectured at law schools and conducted seminars at various legal organizations around the country.
He is the founder and director of the non-profit Trial Lawyers College, where, per its mission statement, lawyers and judges "committed to the jury system" are trained to help achieve justice for individuals fighting "corporate and government oppression", particularly those individuals wh…

Later life

After winning the Fieger acquittal in 2008, Spence told jurors, "This is my last case. I will be 80 in January, and it's time for me to quit, to put down the sword." In 2010, Spence was still listed as an active partner in the Spence Law Firm, located in Jackson, Wyoming, and continues to make public appearances. Gerry Spence's next case, a civil suit for wrongful incarceration, ended with a mistrial in December 2012, when the jury could not come to a unanimous decision. Per the cite t…

Partial bibliography

Gerry Spence is the author of more than a dozen books, including:
• Gunning for Justice - My Life and Trials (Doubleday 1982) ISBN 9780385177030
• Of Murder and Madness: A True Story of Insanity and the Law (Doubleday 1983) ISBN 978-0385188012
• Trial by Fire: The True Story of a Woman's Ordeal at the Hands of the Law (William Morrow 1986) ISBN 9780688060756

Further reading

• Wyoming in Profile, Pruett Publishing, Boulder, Colorado, 1981, by Jean Henry Mead. ISBN 9780871086006