Top 10 Richest Lawyers in the World of 2021

Jane Wanjiru Michuki is a Kenyan lawyer, investor and businesswoman with a net worth of $60 million. She graduated from the University of Warwick in the U.K. She is the managing partner of Kimani & Michuki Advocates. Her firm currently represents an extensive list of clients including Equity Group Holdings, Ltd., which is the largest bank holding company in Africa, serving over 9.2 million customers. Michuki served lead counsel for several massive housing project developers in Kenya, including the Suraya group. In addition to practicing law, she is the largest female stockholder on the Nairobi Stock Exchange. Michuki is also teaching what is a skelly hearing at her office and she is a recognized humanitarian, serving as both a Human Rights consultant with the United Nations and the Special Representative to the Secretary General to the United Nations Mission Liberia.

Roy Black is an American civil and criminal defense attorney based in Miami with an estimated net worth of $85 million dollars. Black is most widely recognized for two high profile cases in which he was the defense attorney for William Kennedy Smith and Rush Limbaugh, respectively. Other celebrities whom Roy has represented include “Cheers” and “Frasier” star Kelsey Grammer, singer Justin Bieber, billionaire/sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, artist Peter Max, “Girls Gone Wild” creator Joe Francis, and auto racing driver Helio Castroneves. He is famous for brilliantly-delivered, well-studied arguments during trial, and he received the highest possible score on the Florida Bar exam when he took it in 1970. Black is often referred to as “The Professor,” possibly alluding to time that he spent teaching as an adjunct professor in criminal evidence at the University of Miami. Black frequently appeared on Good Morning America and the Early Show as a legal consultant. He has also appeared on The Real Housewives of Miami as his third wife, Lea Black, is one of the castmates. Black began dating Lea a few months after she served as a juror in Black’s case for William Kennedy Smith.

John Branca is one of the richest entertainment lawyers today with a net worth of $100 million dollars. He was born in Bronxville, New York, and moved to Los Angeles when he was eleven. He played in a band throughout his early teens, and went on to major in music at Los Angeles City College and Occidental College. He then earned his law degree from UCLA School of Law. After earning his law degree, he began working in estate planning, but subsequently shifted his focus to entertainment law. He went on to become one of the most influential entertainment lawyers ever, and has served as the legal counsel for The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Carlos Santana, The Beach Boys, Fleetwood Mac, The Bee Gees, The Doors, Alicia Keys, and Dick Clark, among many, many others. He revolutionized concert promoting, when he designed a centralized ticketing system for The Rolling Stones in 1989. He currently manages the Jackson estate, among other high-profile clients. The standard percentage a manager like Branca receives for his work is 15-20% of all revenue generated.

Robert Shapiro is American civil litigator and senior partner in the Los Angeles-based law firm Glaser Weil Fink Jacobs Howard Avchen & Shapiro. His net worth is $120 million dollars. Robert Shapiro was born September 2, 1942 in Plainfield, New Jersey, but he was raised in Los Angeles. He graduated from LA’s Hamilton High School in 1961. He gained notoriety for being on the team responsible for exonerating O.J. Simpson from the murders of Simpson’s ex-wife and Ron Goldman. He has represented clients from Johnny Carson to Occidental Petroleum and Rockstar Energy Drinks. He is also an effective entrepreneur. He is a founding member of LegalZoom, Shoedazzle.com, and Right Counsel. In addition, Shapiro has also starred as himself and as a lawyer on both television and the big screen. He earned the best film award from the Tenerife International Film Festival in 2015. The 2005 death of his son due to a drug overdose inspired Shapiro to write the children’s book Somo Says No, which contains an anti-drug message. Along with his family, he founded the Brent Shapiro Foundation and Pickford Lofts to assist and rehabilitate drug addicts.

Willie E. Gary is an American attorney, motivational speaker, and businessman who has a net worth of $200 million dollars. He was born in Eastman, Georgia, and graduated from Shaw University with a degree in Business Administration. From there, he went on to earn his law degree from North Carolina Central University. He went on to open the first black law firm in Martin County. He currently lives in Sewall’s Point, Florida, and is known for having won more than 150 cases that resulted in multi-million dollars settlements including one that resulted in a $500 million judgement. He has appeared on various talk shows and news programs, and was featured on “Oprah”. He is listed as one of Forbes’ Magazine’s Top 50 Attorneys in the U.S. He owns two planes and multiple vehicles, including more than one Rolls Royce.

Judith Sheindlin, better known as Judge Judy, is an American family court judge and television star who has a net worth of $440 million.  Her outspoken persona has made her one of the highest-paid women on daytime television. Starting in 1972, she served as a family court prosecutor for 17 years. She then became a judge in the criminal court and the supervising judge in the family court system in New York. In her role, Judy prosecuted domestic violence and child abuse cases. She was known for her no-nonsense attitude and “tough” style of judging, and was featured in profiles in the Los Angeles Times and on “60 Minutes.” She has a penchant for real estate, tying up at least some of her fortune in several expensive homes around the country. She is also a best-selling author with a highly rated book Don’t Pee On My Leg and Tell Me It’s Raining. She also decided to pass up commercial air travel after 9/11. Instead, she uses her own private jet to commute from the set of Judge Judy in Los Angeles from her home in Florida.

Bill Neukom is an American businessman and entrepreneur who has a net worth of $850 million dollars. He was born in San Mateo, California in 1942. He is a Stanford Law School graduate and served as the lead lawyer for Microsoft Corporation for almost 25 years, skillfully guiding the company through treacherous anti-trust and intellectual property litigation. His high-profile cases include the “trial of the century,” otherwise known as United States v. Microsoft. At Microsoft, he was responsible for managing legal and governmental affairs as well as its active philanthropic activities, retiring as the Vice President of Law and Corporate Affairs. Neukom was eventually selected to serve as the president of the American Bar Association from 2007-2008. Neukom went on to become the CEO of the San Francisco Giants between 2008 to 2011, guiding the team to its first World Series win since moving to California in 1958. He now works, primarily, as the founder, president, and CEO of the World Justice Project. His foundation is focused on strengthening the rule of law to promote the development of communities of opportunity and equity around the world.

Jerry M. Reinsdorf was born in Brooklyn, New York in February 1936. He is a lawyer, CPA, and professional sports owner who has a net worth of $1.5 billion dollars. He attendedbGeorge Washington University for undergrad and then he moved to Chicago where he got a job as a CPA/appraiser/mortgage underwriter. He earned a full scholarship to Northwestern University School of Law, graduating in 1960. His very first job after graduating was for the Internal Revenue Service. The very first case he was assigned to was a tax delinquincy case involving Bill Veeck, who owned the White Sox. Currently, he is the owner of both the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Bulls which are worth $1.9 and $3.2 billion today respectively. He has been the head of both teams for more than 35 years and has met with both great success and controversy regarding his handling of key team members, most notably Phil Jackson and Michael Jordan.

With a net worth of $1.8 billion Wichai Thongtang is at spot number 2. He is a powerful corporate billionaire lawyer in Bangkok, Thailand. He came into the limelight when he successfully represented former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in an asset concealment case back in 2001.This case instantly gave him a celebrity status throughout Thailand and abroad. Thongtang graduated from Thammasat University and began practicing law in the 1970s, representing Thai executives and their companies. In addition to his law profession, much of Thongtang’s wealth comes from strategic investment holdings that he has acquired throughout his career. In fact, he is the Chairman of Cable Thai Holding PLC and owns 15 percent of Dusit Medical, a Bangkok healthcare.

At the number 1 position is Peter Angelos, an American trial lawyer and businessman who has a net worth of $2 billion. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland in July 1929. He is the majority owner of the Major League Baseball team the Baltimore Orioles. Angelos graduated from the University of Baltimore School of Law. He is also a racehorse owner and breeder. He was hired by the state of Maryland in 1996 to represent it in the suit against tobacco companies. Angelos became an attorney in 1961 and founded the Law Office of Peter Angelos. He has served as a member of the Baltimore City Council. Peter Angelos became the principal owner and managing partner of the Baltimore Orioles in 1993. He is a member of the University of Baltimore Law School Advisory Committee. He received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1996 and was named Marylander of the Year in 1988.

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