George Saunders Obituary – Chicago (1931-2024)

George Lawton Saunders Jr., one of five children of George Lawton and Ethel Estelle Saunders, was a well-known and accomplished trial lawyer in Chicago. George died at the age of 92 on June 13, 2024 at his home in Chicago.

George was born in the depths of the Great Depression, in the mining town of Mulga, Alabama, and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. His father worked in the coal mines until they closed. Although his mother was forced to drop out of school at the age of 10, she was determined to serve as a mentor to her children and instilled in George a love of learning. After graduating from high school at age 15, George worked odd jobs until he was old enough to enlist in the Air Force. George then attended the University of Alabama, where he received his AB in 1957. He attended the University of Chicago Law School, graduating in 1959 with honors. He served as legal counsel to United States Supreme Court Justice Hugo L. Black.

George joined the Chicago firm of Sidley & Austin in 1962. George has spent much of his career representing regulated industries before regulators and in appellate proceedings, including appeals to the United States Supreme Court. George served as lead outside legal counsel in antitrust litigation brought by the Department of Justice against the Bell System, as well as in numerous private civil antitrust lawsuits – cases that led to the Bell System settlement in 1981, which separated long-distance service from local carriers and transformed the American telecommunications system.

In 1990, George retired from Sidley and founded Saunders & Monroe. For the last few years of his professional life, George practiced law with his wife, Terry, at the Saunders Law Firm.

George was an accomplished golfer, an avid St. Louis Cardinals and Alabama football fan, and a generous supporter of the University of Chicago Law School and other educational and charitable organizations. Most importantly, George, with his great intellect and big heart, was a loving husband, father, grandfather, son, brother and friend to many.

George L. Saunders, Jr. leaves his wife Terry Rose Saunders, three children Kenneth (Gina Chiaro Saunders), Ralph and Victoria Kaplan (Robert), and five grandchildren, Joshua Saunders (Lauren Scauzzo), Noah Saunders, Hannah Saunders, Jonah Kaplan and Amy Kaplan, as well as a brother Alan ( Lois).