H. Lee Godfrey, the former managing partner and name partner of Susman Godfrey, died on Monday.
In an announcement, the firm said he died following a long illness. In 1982, Godfrey joined his friend, Steve Susman, who launched his own firm two years earlier. Together, the pair built Susman Godfrey into a preeminent, commercial litigation boutique with a reputation for taking big cases on a contingency basis.
“Their management styles were completely different but somehow complemented each other perfectly, perhaps because they were also best friends,” the firm’s announcement said.
Recognized as one of the country’s best trial lawyers, the firm said Godfrey’s “smile and wit charmed judges and jurors” and that “his keen intellect persuaded them.”
“Lee’s cross examinations were legendary, an iron fist in a velvet glove,” the announcement reads.
And that skill in the courtroom influenced a generation of Susman Godfrey lawyers, who “owe their courtroom swagger and understanding of human nature to the lessons Lee taught them in and out of the courtroom, usually flavored with his legendary sense of humor,” the firm said.
In 1996, President Bill Clinton nominated Godfrey to serve as the ambassador to Brazil, a role he turned down so he could continue trying cases. Godfrey has been named among the best lawyers in the country by nearly every publication that releases such rankings.
“The most sophisticated clients in the world trusted Lee to handle their cases,” the statement reads. “From representing Northrup over an aborted sale of F-18 fighter jets, to the Gulf pension holders aggrieved at the invasion of their pension fund, to the shareholders of American Shell Oil Company opposing Royal Dutch Shell’s going-private transaction, to mineral rights holders pursuing antitrust claims over oil royalties — Lee litigated some of the most important matters in the firm’s history.”
He was known for his love of good food, “blindingly extravagant French wine,” and spending time with lifelong friends, legendary trial lawyers Joe Jamail, Harry Reasoner and Robin Gibbs, the firm said.
Godfrey worked hard and played hard, Susman Godfrey partner Geoffrey Harrison recently recalled in an unrelated interview with The Texas Lawbook. Harrison had been a practicing lawyer for two months in October 1993 when Godfrey tapped him to try an accounting malpractice case with him. The jury returned a verdict in excess of $77.6 million in favor of their client.
Godfrey threw a party to celebrate in the wine room at Tony’s in Houston, complete with an accordion player, dancing and lawyers singing showtunes.
“That sticks with you,” Harrison said. “And so that’s how I do it.”
Godfrey was born in 1939 and grew up in Palestine, Texas. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1966 and graduated from its law school in 1969.
He is survived by his wife, Sandy, daughter and Susman Godfrey partner Lindsey Godfrey Eccles, her husband Matt and three grandchildren.
“We are profoundly sad that Lee has reached the end of this journey, but we remain deeply grateful to have had him as our partner, mentor and friend,” the statement reads.
Steve Susman died in 2020.