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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Larry
4Rogers Sr., who passed away on January 19, 2023; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Larry Rogers grew up on the far South Side in the
6Roseland community of Chicago; he received his education in
7Catholic schools and excelled in academics; he was accepted
8into law school after graduating college but was forced to put
9his legal career on hold due to a health issue; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Larry Rogers left law school to work three jobs
11to care for his family, including working as a respiratory
12therapist; one of his two other jobs included working at a gas
13station across the street from Comiskey Park, where he began a
1440-year friendship with a regular customer named Joe Power, a
15young attorney who encouraged him to complete law school,
16which he did; they later formed the personal law and medical
17malpractice law firm, Power Rogers, LLP; and
 
18    WHEREAS, During his nearly four-decade legal career, Larry
19Rogers would emerge as a mastermind in the courtroom, winning
20hundreds of millions of dollars in verdicts for victims of
21medical malpractice, motor vehicle negligence, and aviation
22accidents; in 1985, he won a $27 million product liability

 

 

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1verdict, the largest personal injury victory in Illinois
2history at the time, for families who had been wronged by
3Syntex, a baby formula company that sold chloride-deficient
4formula that affected the intellectual development of babies,
5shortly after the Department of Justice declined to press
6charges against the company; in 2000, he helped win a $55
7million verdict, one of the largest in Illinois history, for a
8woman who suffered irreversible brain damage during a
9bronchoscopy exam; he paid his success forward in mentorship,
10guidance, and support of Black students and attorneys who had
11long been excluded from the legal world; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Larry Rogers previously served as the president
13of the Cook County Bar Association and was the first Black
14president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; he was
15named one of the top 500 trial lawyers in the nation; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Larry Rogers was an avid sports fan, holding
17season tickets for the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Bears; he
18also enjoyed taking his Sea Ray sport boat out on Lake Michigan
19and occasionally to Florida or the Bahamas for vacations,
20often bringing along family, friends, and even other
21attorneys; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Larry Rogers was a trailblazer who served as a
23role model for generations of lawyers and helped the Black

 

 

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1community defend its most vulnerable members; he devoted his
2life to the Black community, his family, and the passion of
3building a more equitable justice system in the United States;
4he was generous and eager to spread joy to those he loved;
5above all, he was a dedicated and loving father and
6grandfather; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Larry Rogers is survived by his life partner, Pam
8Anderson; his children and stepchildren, Larry Jr., Dom, Anne
9Marie and Frederic; his nieces and nephews; and his
10grandchildren; therefore, be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
12HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
13we mourn the passing of Larry Rogers Sr. and extend our sincere
14condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved
15him; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
17presented to the family of Larry Rogers as an expression of our
18deepest sympathy.