Draft:Earl Langdon Neal
American lawyer (1928–2005)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Earl Langdon Neal (April 16, 1928 – February 13, 2005) was an American lawyer, and partner at Neal & Leroy, specializing in and advising real estate and municipal law.[1] He was appointed as an Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Chicago in 1960[2] and was elected the first African-American President of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.[3] He specialized in representing local governments, public bodies, and public trusts, focusing on matters related to real estate, zoning, land use, development in both public and private transactions.
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Comment: Please see WP:NOTMEMORIAL and also WP:BLP1E 🇵🇸🇺🇦 FiddleTimtrent FaddleTalk to me 🇺🇦🇵🇸 12:20, 24 April 2026 (UTC)
Earl Langdon Neal | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 16, 1928 |
| Died | February 13, 2005 (aged 76) |
Early life
Earl Neal was born April 16, 1928, and raised in a segregated and predominantly black neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois. His father was Earl J. Neal founded Neal & Leroy in 1938, becoming one of the few African-American licensed attorneys in Chicago.[4] He would later become an Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois. His mother, Evelyn Smith Neal, was a Chicago Public School teacher.[4] Neal graduated from Englewood high school in 1945. He graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1949 and received a J.D. from Michigan Law School in 1952.[5]
After graduating from law school, Neal served two years in the United States Army.[4]
Later life
Neal joined Neal & Leroy in 1955 and remained at the firm for the rest of his career.[4] During his tenure at Neal & Leroy, he counseled the City of Chicago for major public works including the Dan Ryan Expressway, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and U.S. Cellular Field. He also played a major role in acquiring the land used to develop expansion at both Midway Airport and Chicago O'Hare Airport.[5]
In 1960, Mayor Richard J. Daley appointed Neal to the Corporation Counsels office where he served as an Assistant Counsel leading the real estate division.[6] In his role, he collaborated with the Bureau of Engineering on land acquisition efforts for the Dan Ryan and Kennedy expressways' rapid transit expansion and served as a trial attorney for both the Land Acquisition Division and the Land Clearance Committee.[3]
Neal served on the University of Illinois Board of Trustee from 1971-1983. In 1975, he became the first African-American elected President of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.[2] Over the course of his twelve years as trustee, he played a key role in discussions around recruiting minority students to medical school and expanding health services for the surrounding community. He was also deeply involved in the land acquisition and development efforts in the Taylor Street neighborhood that ultimately gave rise to the University of Illinois Circle Campus.[3]
Neal was appointed Chairman of the Chicago/Gary Regional Airport Authority in 1982, where he advocated for addressing the region's increasing demand for aviation transportation.[3]
Awards
Neal received several awards, including the Robert S. Abbott Memorial Award, the Justice John Paul Stevens Award, and the Defender of Justice Award; his community work included membership in the Chicago Urban League, the NAACP, and co-chairmanship of the Teachers Academy for Mathematics and Science.[5]
Personal life
Neal died on February 13, 2005.[6] Following Neal's death, longtime Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley praised him as "a giant of the legal profession" noting that he had served as a trusted advisor to every Chicago mayor over the preceding fifty years and that the city was better for his contributions to civic life.[4]
In 1955, he married Isobel Neal, owner The Isobel Neal Gallery.[5] The couple had one child, Langdon Neal, who currently is Managing Member at Neal & Leroy.[7]
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