Joseph Dahr Jamail Jr. (October 19, 1925 – December 23, 2015) was an American attorney and

billionaire A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least one billion (1,000,000,000, i.e., a thousand million) units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. The American busi ...

. The wealthiest practicing attorney in America, he was frequently referred to as the "King of

Tort A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...

s". In 2011, his net worth was estimated by ''

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'' to be $1.5 billion, making him the 833rd richest person in the world. In 2014, the year before his death, Forbes estimated his net worth at $1.7 billion, making him the 373rd richest person in America. Jamail died on December 23, 2015 in Houston from complications related to pneumonia.

Early life and education

Jamail was born to a Lebanese family. He was a graduate of St. Thomas High School in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. He attended the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

(UT) for one semester before joining the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

in 1943. After serving in the

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during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Jamail returned to UT, where he received his B.A. in 1950 and

The University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

where he received his J.D. in 1953. In 1986 The University of Texas School of Law created the Joseph D. Jamail Centennial Chair in Law and Advocacy in his honor. His son is also a practicing lawyer in Texas.

Career

In 1985, Jamail represented Pennzoil, whose CEO Hugh Liedtke was Jamail's close friend, in a lawsuit against

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. Pennzoil won the case and his contingency fee was $335 million. Jamail was known for his passionate, aggressive, sometimes abrasive advocacy on behalf of his clients; a tendency that has been noted in the ''

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'', by the

Delaware Supreme Court The Delaware Supreme Court is the sole appellate court in the United States state of Delaware. Because Delaware is a popular haven for corporations, the Court has developed a worldwide reputation as a respected source of corporate law decisio ...

as well as other sources. On its own motion, having reviewed deposition transcripts in the ''Paramount'' case, the

wrote that "Mr. Jamail abused the privilege of representing a witness in a Delaware proceeding, in that he: (a) improperly directed the witness not to answer certain questions; (b) was extraordinarily rude, uncivil, and vulgar; and (c) obstructed the ability of the questioner to elicit testimony to assist the Court . . . ." One of Jamail's statements that the court pointed to, in the deposition transcript, was Jamail's statement to deposing counsel that "you could gag a maggot off a meatwagon." The court included its admonition of Jamail in an Addendum to its opinion "as a lesson for the future—a lesson of conduct not to be tolerated or repeated." In April 2006, a particularly sharp exchange, titled "Joe Jamail takes a deposition defended by Edward Carstarphen. Hilarity ensues" or "Texas-Style Deposition," appeared on various

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s and internet sites (particularly related to American law). Following a reprimand by the Delaware Supreme Court, Jamail stated in the press "I'd rather have a nose on my ass than go to Delaware for any reason."

Charity

Jamail made large donations to

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

and the

. The football field at Darrell K. Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium was named Joe Jamail Field in his honor. However, on July 13, 2020, it was announced that the field would be renamed to the Earl Campbell-Ricky Williams Field at the Jamail family's request. The Joseph D. Jamail Jr. Pavilion at the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

is named after him. Also located on the University of Texas campus is the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center, named for him and his wife. The University has erected two statues on campus in his honor. On May 14, 2008, The University of Texas at Austin announced a $15 million gift from Joe Jamail to support the Law School, Nursing School, and the College of Undergraduate Studies. In response to the gift, the university renamed a large meeting room in the tower building to the Lee Hage Jamail Academic Room. In 2008, the

Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark The Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark is a public skatepark in Houston, Texas, United States. The $2.7 million project opened in June 2008. At over 40,000 square feet (3,700 m2), it is one of the largest in Texas. It has two cradles, one of whi ...

opened near downtown Houston. It was a $2.7 million project. The park is public. On April 27, 2011, the

San Marcos Baptist Academy San Marcos Academy or SMA (also known as San Marcos Baptist Academy or SMBA) is a private, coeducational, college preparatory Christian school that is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas. It is accredited by the Southern Assoc ...

announced a $1 million gift from Joe Jamail to help establish a fund to build a special event center on the Academy campus in memory of Jamail’s wife, Lee, who graduated from San Marcos Academy in 1944.

References

External links

Joe Jamail Interview
* Jamail, Joe and Paul Hobby
Joe Jamail Oral History
Houston Oral History Project, December 11, 2007. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jamail, Joe 1925 births 2015 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Texas Texas lawyers Rice University people University of Texas at Austin alumni University of Texas School of Law alumni American billionaires American businesspeople American people of Lebanese descent Middle Eastern Christians Trial lawyers United States Marines St. Thomas High School (Houston, Texas) alumni United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II