ABOTA Foundation presents first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award to Gordon S. Rather, Jr.

1996 National President honored at National Board Meeting with Mark P. Robinson Lifetime Achievement Award

DALLAS (Feb. 3, 2009) - The Foundation of the American Board of Trial Advocates recently presented its highest honor to Gordon S. Rather, Jr. - the Mark P. Robinson Lifetime Achievement Award.

Rather is a longtime ABOTA member from Little Rock, Ark., who was National President of ABOTA in 1996. He has been a member of the association's National Board of Directors since 1989 and has chaired multiple committees and served as President of the Arkansas Chapter (1987-1988). In 1994, he received the Foundation's Masters in Trial Award.

The Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award was created in honor of ABOTA's founding father and first President, Mark P. Robinson of Los Angeles. It is given in recognition of a lifetime of dedicated service to ABOTA, leadership of the legal profession and preservation of the right to trial by jury guaranteed by the Seventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Rather is the first recipient of the award.

"Gordon Rather has been a dedicated and assiduous leader of the Arkansas Chapter, the National organization and the Foundation," said Joel W. Collins, Jr., 2008 Foundation President and partner in the Columbia, S.C. firm of Collins and Lacy. "Gordon unfailingly serves as the voice of wisdom and is the best source of institutional history and tradition. He is an insightful, forward thinking leader."

Collins added that Rather has been described as the "wordsmith of ABOTA" for his careful, timely and appropriate revisions of draft documents. He also described Rather as someone who continues to work for the organization well after achieving its highest office.

"Gordon has traveled all over our nation attending chapter meetings," Collins said. "He has participated in many professional education programs, and his level of participation remains as high as anyone." Collins also added that while there were a number of worthy potential recipients of the award, no one would be more appropriate than Rather to receive the award.

The award was presented at ABOTA's National Board of Directors Meeting, at the Ritz-Carlton in Sarasota, Fla., Jan. 17. Collins was joined at the presentation by Mark P. Robinson, Jr., the son of the organization's late founder. Robinson is of the Newport Beach, Calif., firm of Robinson, Calcagnie and Robinson.

ABOUT GORDON S. RATHER, JR.:
Firm: Wright, Lindsey & Jennings LLP, Little Rock, Ark. Admitted to Practice: Arkansas 1968; United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas; United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit; Supreme Court of the United States.

Education: Vanderbilt University (B.A. 1961, cum laude), Phi Beta Kappa; Duke University (J.D. 1968).

Military: Lieutenant, U.S. Navy (1961-65).

Professional Affiliations: American Board of Trial Advocates (National President 1996; National Board of Directors, 1989-present; President, Arkansas Chapter, 1987-88); American College of Trial Lawyers (Fellow); International Academy of Trial Lawyers (Fellow and State Chair); Arkansas Association of Defense Counsel; Defense Research Institute; Maritime Law Association of the United States (Proctor); American Bar Association (Litigation Section); Arkansas Bar Association; Pulaski County Bar Association; Arkansas Bar Foundation (Fellow); Arkansas Chapter of The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation; Henry Woods Inn of Court (Member Emeritus).

Honors: The Best Lawyers in America (1999-2009); Chambers USA, America's Leading Lawyers for Business (2005-2008); The Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America (2005-2008); The Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America (2006 - 2007); Mid-South Super Lawyers (2006-2008); 1994 Masters in Trial Award (Foundation of ABOTA); 2000 Outstanding Lawyer Award (Pulaski County Bar Association); 2006 Outstanding Lawyer Award (Arkansas Bar Association).