nothin In Memoriam: Howard Jacobs Remembered | New Haven Independent

In Memoriam: Howard Jacobs Remembered

Jacobs & Dow, LLC

Attorney Howard Jacobs died last week at age 90. He represented thousands of people who were injured, or accused of crime, or in the throes of divorce. He gave all of them his focused and undivided attention. Along the way he taught us how to practice this profession the right way. Howard lived as he practiced: with fierce and uncompromising zeal.

Howard was a legend in Connecticut’s legal community, a devoted husband, father, grandfather and sibling, and a respected and prominent figure in New Haven and beyond.

Howard Jacobs practiced law in New Haven for more than 60 years. He joined his father Israel Jacobs’ practice in 1947 after graduating with distinction from the University of Michigan Law School where he was a Senior Editor of its Law Journal. For the remainder of the 20th Century and well into the 21st, Howard’s practice concentrated in personal injury, criminal and domestic relations cases.

Howard Jacobs established a standard of practice that influenced the bar of the State of Connecticut. He was not about flash. He did not seek accolades or applause. He focused on his clients and in getting results for his clients. And throughout his career he got those results. He was revered by his clients, respected by judges, emulated by lawyers and feared by his adversaries. All this was justified.

Like many lawyers, Howard loved the law. But more than that, Howard loved the practice of law. No one did it better. As a result of his successes Howard became The Man to See” for people in trouble.

So, how did Howard practice? He knew the law. He knew which statutes applied. But he still went to the books and read the statute anyway, and copied it, and marked it, and put it in his file. 

When he sued someone he read the summons carefully, all the typewritten entries, to make sure they were correct before he signed it. Even though he had fine secretaries, mistakes on the summons belonged to him, not his staff. So he read the summons. He did not want mistakes. If a case needed an investigator he used a good one. If the client needed an expert, he hired the best. He took thousands of depositions, but he prepared for each and every one, himself, studying the file, writing his questions out in left handed longhand that only he could read. His questions were clear, short, concise, without extra words, capable of only one meaning. 

He spoke in court only when necessary. He always made sense, and when he argued, his opponent had to confront the logic of his argument. And if he was winning, he said as little as possible. His transcripts were pristine. When the case settled, the client knew how the money was spent, to the penny, and knew that he’d gotten his money’s worth.

While Howard was doing all this, he found time to read the new court decisions, both Supreme Court and trial courts. He’d often have cases copied for his partners because he knew what they were working on, and he wanted to give them cases that helped us. And when Howard took on a criminal client he focused always on getting the best result possible. And he did.

Howard lived life to its fullest. He was fond of saying, Never miss a chance to celebrate.” And he did. As dedicated as Howard was to his legal practice, he was even more dedicated to his family. He married his childhood sweetheart, Sis, his wife of 67 years. They had three exceptional daughters and six grandchildren, all whom have achieved significant professional successes. They mourn his loss, take comfort in their memories of him, and follow his example.

The legal community mourn his loss as well and lawyers honor him by striving to achieve the level of practice he maintained throughout his career. That practice continues on in the firm of Jacobs & Dow in New Haven.

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