With a knack for numbers and a keen eye for detail, James C. Spangler became a prominent real estate and tax attorney and was chairman of Chicago Bar Association committees for those issues.
A member of the Board of Appeals of Cook County from 1956 to 1966, Mr. Spangler also wrote and lectured for the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education on ad valorem taxation, typically a tax based on the value of real estate or property.
“He was a sought-after attorney because of his thoroughness when it came to the law,” said his daughter, Jacqueline Broderick. “He left no stone unturned.”
Mr. Spangler, 86, a World War II veteran and former partner in the law firm of Lapin, Hoff, Spangler & Greenberg in Chicago, died of heart failure Wednesday, Jan. 5, in his Elmhurst home. He was previously a longtime resident of River Forest.
He was a graduate of Marquette University’s law school, and in September a classroom in the new Eckstein Hall was named in his honor.
“As a member of ‘the greatest generation,’ Jim was a humble man, not one to talk about himself or the sacrifices that he made for others’ benefit,” said Joseph Kearney, dean of Marquette University Law School.
Born and raised on Chicago’s West Side, Mr. Spangler graduated from Campion High School, a Jesuit-run boarding school in Prairie du Chien, Wis. Mr. Spangler attended the U.S. Naval Reserve Midshipmen School at Notre Dame University before serving with the Atlantic Fleet during World War II, his family said.
“He saw action but was a closed book whenever we’d ask about his war years,” said his granddaughter Erin Broderick.
After the war, Mr. Spangler received a bachelor’s degree from Lawrence College in Wisconsin and in 1949 graduated from Marquette law school.
After briefly working with the Cook County state’s attorney and in the Illinois attorney general’s office, he became an associate with the Chicago firm of Geary & Stagman, and later a partner in Kennedy, Golan, Morris, Spangler & Greenberg in Chicago. He retired in 1989 as a partner with Lapin, Hoff, Spangler & Greenberg
“What struck me was how engaged he remained in life,” said John Novotny, director of law school advancement at Marquette, recalling a conversation he’d had with Mr. Spangler three years ago. “This was not a man living in the past. He was very interested in the dynamics of today.”
Other survivors include his wife of 61 years, Dorothy, and two other grandchildren.
Services were held.
