Mayer, Levy, 1858-1922

Levy Mayer (October 23, 1858 – August 14, 1922) was an American lawyer from Virginia. A child prodigy of law, Mayer graduated from Yale Law School before he could even legally practice the profession in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois. After several years organizing the Chicago Law Library, Mayer practiced with Adolf Kraus. Mayer became one of the most infamous lawyers in Chicago by defending large corporations against anti-trust litigation. Furthermore, he successfully defended the Iroqouis Theater and its manager in the aftermath of the Iroquois Theatre fire. At the time of his death, he was considered one of the richest lawyers in the United States. He is the namesake of Levy Mayer Hall at Northwestern University and his law firm is today known as Mayer Brown.