Brandeis mourns the loss of alums in 2015

Brandeis School of Law is mourning the loss of some of its alums this year.

On March 12, Robert Reed Gregory, 49, passed away in Louisville. He was a practicing attorney and CPA in the city throughout his career, primarily with Arthur Anderson and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Gregory graduated from Brandeis in 1994.

On Feb. 27, Ewing Lloyd Hardy Jr., 90, died at Episcopal Church Home in Lyndon, Kentucky. He graduated from UofL's Speed School of Engineering and Brandeis School of Law and practiced law for 61 years.

Robert William Riley passed away on March 1 at age 66. He received his JD in 1973 and was a 35-year member of the Kentucky and Louisville Bar Associations.

Alan Nathan Leibson, 86, died on March 25. The former president of the Kentucky Bar Association (1969) received his bachelor's and JD from the University of Louisville and was a U.S. Army veteran, serving during the Korean War. Leibson spent six decades working as a plaintiff's malpractice attorney and, in 2006, was awarded a lifetime membership award from the Kentucky Academy of Trial Attorneys.

Claude E. Banister passed away in May at the age of 79. He attended the University of Louisville School of Law, graduating with honors in 1965. He was a member of the Kentucky Bar Association and a member of the Honorable order of Kentucky Colonels. Banister spent 52 years working for State Farm Insurance.

Donald R. Wood, 69, died on May 23. He was a graduate of the University of Louisville School of Law. After graduation, he worked in estate planning at First Kentucky Trust Company, beginning in 1973. He remained there through the company's transition to National City Corporation and PNC Bank, retiring in 2010. Wood was a member of the Kentucky Bar Association and the Estate Planning Council.

Joey Wise, 2008 Brandeis School of Law graduate, passed away June 10 at age 33. He earned a BA in Anthropology and Sociology from Centre College prior to attending Brandeis. While at law school, he received the Deans Merit Scholarship. Wise enjoyed playing golf, writing and volunteering for the Enis Furley Foundation.

Peter Louis "Pete" Quebberman, 51, of Louisville, passed away on June 24. He graduated from Brandeis School of Law in 1994 and spent his career as an attorney specializing in family, real estate and tax law. Prior to law school, Quebberman was enlisted with the U.S. Air Force.

Cassandra L. Schmidt, 45, passed away on June 30 in Louisville. She graduated from Brandeis School of Law in 1996.

Gary Webb Anderson, 63, died on July 8 following a 7-year battle with leukemia. He was a practicing attorney, former international and national president of Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity and a former football player at the University of Kentucky, where he received his bachelor's degree prior to receiving his J.D. from Louisville ('79).

Michael Kleiner, 73, passed away in September at Baptist Hospital East in Louisville. He arrived in Louisville in the late 1950s, from Brooklyn, New York, to play basketball for UofL. He ended up playing tennis after suffering a knee injury and was a four-year starter for the Cardinal tennis team. He earned his law degree from Louisville in 1972. After a few years practicing law, Kleiner switched careers and became a teacher.

James Chambers, 73, Glasgow, passed away on Sept. 14. He attended Murray State on a basketball scholarship and later went on to graduate from Eastern Kentucky University and the University of Louisville Law School ('79). He was a former member of the Kentucky State Police and the Jefferson County Police Department, and practiced law for 35 years. Chambers founded James Chambers & Associates Law Firm.

David W. Gray, Jr., 84, died on Dec. 26, 2015. He was a retired attorney, having been a member of the former law firms of Fahey and Gray, and Rubin, Hays and Foley. He graduated from the Brandeis School of Law in 1960. He was also an Army veteran, member of St. Mark's Episcopal Church and a former member of its choir and vestry. He was a part of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity, Louisville Boat Club, Louisville Masonic Lodge Number 400, and the Filson Historical Society.