SR2576 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR2576 LRB099 24291 MST 52034 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of H. Joseph Gitlin, who passed away on December 2, 2016 at the age of 84; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Gitlin practiced law in Woodstock, beginning in 1959; he served as Mayor of Woodstock from 1973 to 1977 and contributed to the restoration of the Woodstock Opera House; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Gitlin was nationally recognized as one of the top 43 divorce lawyers by the National Law Journal and was listed in the "Best Lawyers in America"; he was also a Fellow of the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, a Diplomat of the American College of Family Trial Lawyers, and a member of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys; he was a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, which honored him in 2006 with the Berger Award in recognition of his exemplary legal career; he was active in the American Bar Association, serving as Chair of the Adoption Committee, as founder and Chair of the Surrogacy Committee, and as Founder and Chair of the Genetics and Human Reproduction Committee; he served as Chair of the Family Law Section of the Illinois State Bar Association in 1970, and more recently, founded and Chaired the Genetics and Human Reproduction Task Force; he was named a Laureate of the Illinois State Bar Association, a designation given to lawyers "who have established and maintained the highest principles of the profession"; he was also a member of "The Dirty 30", a distinguished group of lawyers who met annually; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Gitlin published articles for national law journals and Illinois law journals; his name became synonymous with divorce upon the publication of his book, "Gitlin on Divorce, A Guide to Illinois Matrimonial Law", an authoritative book on divorce first published in 1990, which has been updated every year since 1991 and is in its fourth edition and is frequently cited by Illinois courts; he also authored the first continuing legal education work on adoption for Illinois, and a book, "Adoption: An Attorney's Guide to Helping Adoptive Parents"; he also edited "Gitlin's Illinois Annotated Family Practice Desktop Code"; he was a regular columnist for the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, and was published in the Illinois Bar Journal; he wrote, edited, and published his own periodical, the "Gitlin on Divorce Reports", a bimonthly publication which offered candid and insightful commentary on the opinions rendered by the Illinois Appellate Courts and the Illinois Supreme Court; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Gitlin served his community in many capacities, including serving as a member of the Woodstock School Board, Councilman, Mayor for the City of Woodstock, President of the Mental Health Center for McHenry County, and founder of the McHenry County Family Services Agency; he served on the Board of the Mount Hope Methodist Church in Johnsburg and served as Chair of the Board of the First United Methodist Church of Woodstock; he was a Delegate to the 1980 Republican National Convention; before his legal practice, he served in the United States Army from 1954 to 1956 as a Psychiatric Social Worker during the Korean War; he served as a group worker in a Chicago settlement house, the Association House, and as a community worker for the Institute for Juvenile Research in Chicago, coordinating a study of juvenile gangs in Chicago's near west side; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Gitlin was preceded in death by his first wife, Val Johnson Gitlin; his daughter, Laura Gitlin-Petlak; his parents, Clara and Reverend M. H. Gitlin; his sister, Fania; and his brother, Leon; and

WHEREAS, Joseph Gitlin is survived by his wife, Paulette Gitlin; his son, Gunnar Gitlin; his stepchildren, Jessica (Michael) Levins, Frank (Jen Consalvo) Gruber, and Jack (Rose Marie) Vrett; his sister, Vera; his brother, Emmanuel (Lydia); his grandchildren, Alisa, Hannah, and Miriam; his step-grandchildren, Beverly, Charlie, and Isla Breeze; his great-grandchildren; and his nieces and nephews; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of H. Joseph Gitlin, and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Joseph Gitlin as an expression of our deepest sympathy.