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Sunday, May 26, 2019

LOUIS JEPEWAY HAS PASSED AWAY

He enjoyed a good cigar. He enjoyed a good courtroom tussle. He practiced law in this community before many of us were born. He was loyal to his clients and devoted to achieving the best outcome for them. He was a bit of a raconteur when you got to know him. And he had, as Edith Georgi points out below, "a generous heart." 
Our friend and colleague Louis Jepeway passed away Sunday morning of a heart attack. 


Dear Friends and Colleagues,

It is with profound sadness that I share with you that we lost another hero today. Louis Jepeway died this morning of a heart attack. A person known for his generous heart, his fearless spirit in court, and his insatiable quest for knowledge, he will be missed by all who knew him.

Please share your thoughts and memories so that they can be delivered to his family and loved ones....

And perform acts of generosity in his name--that's what Louis did constantly, and usually anonymously.

Arrangements will be announced soon.

Sadly,

Edith

14 comments:

Peter Raben said...

Louie was my buddy. Loved having lunch with him at the Burdine's cafeteria on Flagler Street. He is a hero of mine. If we are ultimately measured by how we are remembered, Louie is a giant.

Anonymous said...

RIP LJ

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


Lou was one of the first criminal defense attorneys I met when I first started in criminal defense work and going to court in the GJB. What a great lawyer he was.

One of my favorite memories is when he filed that Motion requesting a judge remove the sign “We who labor here seek the truth”.


http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/defense_lawyer_seeks_removal_of_courtroom_sign_about_seeking_the_truth

A lawyer for a defendant in a triple murder prosecution is asking a judge to take down a sign hanging in every Miami-Dade courtroom.

Rest In Peace.

Cap Out .....

BBM said...

The best lawyer and nicest friend I have ever had.

Rumpole said...

A well respected lawyer died too soon. I will NOT post frivolous comments about fictitious characters traveling and how they dress. What kind of insensitive idiot are you?

Lucian Ferster said...

Louie was truly a kind, generous, self-effacing, and gentle man. Traits all too rare in our profession. My first contact with Louie was in the mid eighties when an impecunious Antioch classmate developed serious Florida Bar problems. On Edith Georgi's suggestion I took my friend by to see Louie, a total stranger at the time. Louie immediately took up my friend's cause, I backed out and Louie spent a lot of time and effort on the problem. My friend faded away, I became friends with Louie, and the Bar issue was never discussed. Around 25 years later, over a glass of Scotch, I asked Louie if my friend had ever paid him. "No," he responded, "but I was happy to help him. I hope he is doing well." That was Louie, no recriminations, no malice, all kindness. Louie Jepeway has graced us by his time on earth. Thank you Louie.

Lucian E. Ferster

Rumpole said...

I love reading about how a lawyer quietly helps someone for free and never mentions it. That’s the true definition of charity. Doing something for the sake of someone and not for the publicity.

Carmen Vizcaino said...

The world is less kind and less amusing because Louie has left it.
Carmen M. Vizcaino

anonymous said...

So sad to hear of the passing of this quietly heroic, kind, gentle man with a quirky sense of humor and deep sense of warrior justice.

Thank you Lucien and The Captain for sharing your stories. I did not know him well but well enough to share brief conversations and at least one lunch. He always brought a smile to my face when I saw him in court. May he rest in eternal peace. Deep condolences to his family, friends, and loved ones.

Kathy Hamilton

Anonymous said...

He was a kind and gentle heart.

He was always kind and courteous.

He was smart and did the right thing.

He was a good guy.

Mike Catalano

Steven Bustamante said...

I was so sad to hear about this.

Simply, my experience of Louie was like others: he was a kind, genuine, man, and a great lawyer.

I am happy to have known him and mourn.

Bob Rosenblatt said...

During the Otero bombing trial which was removed to Ft.Walton Beach, the red neck judge held Bill Clay and me in contempt and sentenced us to jail. Louie took up our cause and had the contempt reversed by the Florida Supreme Court. He wrote an amazing brief. Louie never charged us a fee and turned down our efforts to pay him for his hard work. He was a great guy and truly a "Lawyer's Lawyer. He will be missed but never forgotten.

Anonymous said...

Never knew the man as I am a 73 West Flagler lawyer but from the Herald obituary sounded like quite a man that will be missed.

Unknown said...

I was your caregiver for almost two years. I have never met anybody like you in this earth. May the good Lord bless your beautiful soul and receive you in His kingdom.