Roy William Ide III
Roy William Ide III | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 23, 1940 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | July 8, 2025 (aged 85) |
| Education | Washington and Lee University (BA, 1962), The University of Virginia (JD, 1965), Georgia State University (MBA, 1970)[1] |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Board member of | MetaJure, Rimidi Diabetes, Inc. Ablemarle Corporation, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc. Audit Committee Clark Atlanta University, Conference Board Governance Center[2] |
Roy William Ide III (April 23, 1940 – July 8, 2025) was an American lawyer and governance leader, who served as president of the American Bar Association from 1994-1995.[3][4]
Ide played a significant role in the creation of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, taking MARTA to referendum November 9, 1971.[5] Working as a young lawyer in the State Bar of Georgia, Ide grouped together with colleagues to form the Georgia Legal Services Program establishing legal aid across the state. The program continues to operate today.[6]
Early life
[edit]Ide was born in Chicago, Illinois, to R. William Ide Jr. and Jenny Coleman.[5] He attended Washington and Lee University and the University of Virginia School of Law.[1]
Ide was a lawyer at King and Spalding working jury cases, federal and state appellate courts while earning his MBA taking night school classes at Georgia State University.[5] During his time at K&S, he helped form the Georgia Legal Services program, becoming chair of the GA Young Lawyers and then the ABA Young Lawyers Division.[6] His work with the Legal Services Corporation was later recognized by President Bill Clinton in 1999.[7]
Early in his career, he argued Davis v. Pontiac Motor Division of General Motors Corp. (1969) in the Court of Appeals of Georgia.[8]
In 1971, Ide joined Stell Huie of Huie and Harland in working to create a rapid transit authority for the growing metropolitan Atlanta.[5] When the election count stated that the proposition passed narrowly by 461 votes out of 110,000 cast, Ide prepared to tackle the lawsuits in both federal and state courts to defend MARTA.[5] After a Fulton Superior Court judge ruled the votes must be recounted, election officials worked tirelessly to check each ballot. In the end, MARTA had enough votes to pass.[9]
Ide worked for MARTA for five years, leading the construction of a $1B capital project, navigating various competing interests including race, socioeconomic differences, and environmental concerns.[5] He was involved in property condemnation, negotiations with railroads and securing air rights for the development of the transit system.[5] During this time, Huie & Harland became Huie, Brown & Ide after several lawyers left the firm.[1] Soon after, the firm began hiring women and lawyers of color.[1]
American Bar Association Presidency
[edit]Ide joined the ABA's policy-making House of Delegates in 1976, and the Board of Governors in 1987, eventually deciding to run for president.[5] After winning the election in 1993, Ide became the 117th ABA president.[5][10]
During his presidency, Ide traveled extensively to speak at various conferences on topics such as the rule of law, civil justice, and the drug epidemic.[11] He traveled to Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia in 1993, shortly after he started his term, to see how American lawyers could help African countries develop the rule of law.[12] This resulted in long term exchanges between American and African bars and benches.[13] He was heavily involved in encouraging more laypersons involvement in the civil justice system.[14]
Ide also founded the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Drug Abuse.[15]
United States Olympic Board
[edit]Ide was appointed by Mayor Maynard Jackson to the ACOG Board Executive Committee to oversee The 1996 Atlanta Olympics.[5]
EastWest Institute
[edit]Following his ABA presidency, Ide became Chair of the Central Eastern European Institute which worked to establish justice systems in the former Soviet Bloc countries.[5] Ide then became Counsel to the EastWest Institute, an organization focused on fostering international cooperation.[2] Ide served as General Counsel and Secretary of the EastWest Institute until its partnership with the College of Charleston in 2021.[2]
Later life and death
[edit]In 1994, Ide filed an amicus curiae brief to support the defendant's claim for habeas corpus in McFarland v. Scott, 512 U.S. 849 (1994).
Ide helped assemble the Task Force for American Democracy within the American Bar Association in August 2023, aimed at addressing issues related to the rule of law.[16] The organization conducts listening tours to improve public trust of the electoral process and outlines ways lawyers can help protect democracy.[17]
Ide served on the board of trustees of Clark Atlanta University,[18] and as an honorary consul general for the Kingdom of Thailand.[19]
Ide died July 8, 2025, at the age of 85.[20]
Publications
[edit]- The Role of the Justice System in the Product Liability Debate National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 1994. [https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/4768/chapter/6
- Ide, R., III. Civil and Criminal Justice Issues. 1993. C-SPAN. Retrieved December 18, 2024, from https://www.c-span.org/video/?38284-1
- Product Liability and Innovation: Managing Public Independent Fact-Finding: A Trust-Generating Institution for an Age of Corporate Illegitimacy and Public Mistrust]Risk in an Uncertain Environment. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/4768.]
- Ide, R., III. Retrieved 2024, December 18. Wisconsin's Journey to Just Solutions. Marquette Law Review. https:// [https://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/mulr/vol80/iss3/7/
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Kuhn, Cliff. "William Ide oral history interview, 2002 April 29". Digital Collections Georgia State University Library. Retrieved December 19, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Board of Directors". East-West Institute. Retrieved December 19, 2024.
- ^ Weiss, Debra. "Courtroom 'is not a theater' for unsubstantiated election claims". ABA Journal. Retrieved December 19, 2024.
- ^ Cassens Weiss, Debra (July 14, 2025). "Former ABA president, 'a towering figure in the legal community,' dies at 85". Retrieved July 18, 2025.
Atlanta lawyer R. William (Bill) Ide III, who served as president of the American Bar Association for the 1993 to 1994 term, died on July 8 at the age of 85.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Young, Andrea. "R. William Ide oral history interview, 2011-11-11". Digital Collections Georgia State University Library.
- ^ a b "State Bar Leadership Guides the Creation of Legal Aid for the Poor". State Bar of Georgia. Retrieved December 19, 2024.
- ^ "Remarks on the 25th Anniversary of the Legal Services Corporation". Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents. 1999. pp. 1505–1509. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ Davis v. Pontiac Motor Division of General Motors Corp., 170 S.E.2d 872 (Ga. App. 1969).
- ^ Monroe, Doug (August 2012). "Where it All Went Wrong". Atlanta. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
- ^ "Board of Governors". Annual Report of the A.B.A. 119 (2): xi. 1994. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "ABA Officers". The American Bar Association. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
- ^ Podgers, James (September 1, 1999). "Brighter Continent: ABA efforts help spark hopes for Africa in 21st Century". ABA Journal. p. 90-91. ISSN 0747-0088. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations for 1998: Hearings Before a Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fifth Congress, First Session". 1997. p. 259. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ Podgers, James; Reske, Henry J. (June 1, 1994). "Facing the New Realities: Conference seeks greater public role in the justice system". ISSN 0747-0088. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ Stein, Robert A. (January 1, 1998). "Community-Based Crusade". ABA Journal. p. 85. ISSN 0747-0088. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "Defending democracy: Your action plan to protect rule of law". American Bar Association. Retrieved December 18, 2024.
- ^ Robert, Amanda. "Wanted: Lawyers to help with this year's election". ABA Journal. Retrieved December 18, 2024.
- ^ "Faculty, Staff and Board of Trustees". Clark Atlanta University. 2023. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "Royal Thai Honorary Consulates – General in the U.S." Thai Embassy. June 10, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ Weiss, Debra Cassens (July 14, 2025). "Former ABA president, 'a towering figure in the legal community,' dies at 85". ABA Journal. Retrieved August 4, 2025.