Leo Branton Jr. (February 17, 1922 – April 19, 2013) was an American

trial lawyer A lawyer is a person who Practice of law, practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different Jurisdiction, legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney at law, attorney, barrister, canonist, canon l ...

. He attended

Tennessee State University Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tenness ...

and earned his law degree from

Northwestern University School of Law Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law is the law school of Northwestern University, a private research university. It is located on the university's Chicago campus. Northwestern Law has been ranked among the top 14, or "T14" law scho ...

in 1948. He served in the Army during World War II. Branton represented Nat King Cole in a label dispute, and

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

's estate, among others. He was well known for representing Angela Davis during her 1972 murder trial and subsequent acquittal. Branton was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas on February 17, 1922 to Leo Branton Sr. and Pauline Wiley, the oldest of five children. His mother was a graduate of the

Tuskegee Institute Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU), formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute, is a private, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was founded on Independence Day in 1881 by the state legislature. The campus was de ...

. In 2011, the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

honored Branton by awarding him the

William Robert Ming Advocacy Award William Robert Ming Jr. (May 7, 1911 – June 30, 1973) was an American lawyer, attorney with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and law professor at University of Chicago Law School and Howard University School ...

for the spirit of financial and personal sacrifice displayed in his legal work.

References

* William Yardley, "Leo Branton Jr., Activists' Lawyer, Dies at 91", New York Times, April 27, 2013

1922 births 2013 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II 20th-century American lawyers {{US-law-bio-stub