Updated 5 hours ago<\/p>\n
Ron Barber had a passion for justice, a calm demeanor and a sharp intellect a combination that served him and his clients well as he successfully argued in Pennsylvania courts for the First Amendment rights of the media and individual civil liberties. <\/p>\n
Ron was the most gentle trial lawyer I have ever seen, said fellow partner David Strassburger, who worked with Mr. Barber on many cases at the Pittsburgh law firm of Strassburger McKenna Gutnick & Gefsky. There was no fire and brimstone in him at all. His passion came through with his intellect and the words that he chose rather than the volume that he spoke them at. <\/p>\n
Being honest about what he was saying resonated with every judge and jury he stood before. <\/p>\n
Ronald D. Barber, 56, of Sewickley died Thursday, July 6, 2017, at West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh of complications from prostate cancer. <\/p>\n
Born in Fort Lewis, Wash., on Aug. 12, 1960, he was the son of Mary Barber of Sewickley and the late Alan Barber. <\/p>\n
Mr. Barber graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1988 after completing undergraduate studies at Pitt in politics and philosophy with magna cum laude honors. <\/p>\n
He began at the Pittsburgh law firm as an associate attorney and became a partner in 2003. His career at the firm bookended a period between 1994 and 2000 when he pursued another passion teaching and served as the permanent law clerk for Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Ronald Folino. <\/p>\n
Known for mentoring younger attorneys, Mr. Barber was an adjunct faculty member at Pitt, teaching courses on ethics, public policy and mass media. <\/p>\n
He was a pro bono legal adviser for the university's student newspaper, The Pitt News, where he'd served as an editor while a student. <\/p>\n
Strassburger said Mr. Barber obtained a ruling from the state Supreme Court that settlement agreements resolving claims against public agencies in this case, a civil rights suit filed against the Westmoreland County Housing Authority should be made public, even if paid with insurance money. <\/p>\n
He successfully argued so many of those types of issues that did not result in a lot of notoriety but served to educate the bench and others about the importance of open government, Strassburger said. <\/p>\n
He was a member of the legal committee of the Pittsburgh chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. <\/p>\n
If he saw there was a wrong that needed righted, that's what he saw as a good case, said his wife and fellow attorney, Jean Novak. He was always doing the right thing, whether or not it benefited him. <\/p>\n
During his two-year battle with cancer, Mr. Barber participated in a trial treatment in the hope, even if it couldn't help him, it would help other people in the future, she said. <\/p>\n
When not working on cases, Mr. Barber enjoyed hiking at Cook Forest and playing chess. <\/p>\n
A former longtime president of the Pittsburgh Chess Club, he often visited prison inmates to teach them the game. <\/p>\n
He thought chess was a great equalizer, and he was devoted to doing what he could to promote the game to everyone, his wife said. <\/p>\n
There will be no viewing for Mr. Barber. A memorial service is planned for later in the summer. <\/p>\n
In addition to his wife and mother, Mr. Barber is survived by two children, Zachary and Alexandra Barber, both of Squirrel Hill. <\/p>\n
Memorial donations were suggested to the Look Good Feel Better Foundation, 1620 L Street NW, 12th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20036, or to Animal Friends, 562 Camp Horne Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15237. <\/p>\n
Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-836-6622, jhimler@tribweb.com<\/a> or via Twitter @jhimler_news. <\/p>\n GCDC executive director search put on hold <\/p>\n Lycippus Hardware & Supply store to be put up for public sale <\/p>\n Fayette County commissioner's wife receives prison term in shooting case <\/p>\n Irwin woman chooses trial over plea offer in child endangerment case <\/p>\n Westmoreland fugitive caught in McKees Rocks <\/p>\n You are solely responsible for your comments and by using TribLive.com you agree to our Terms of Service. <\/p>\n We moderate comments. Our goal is to provide substantive commentary for a general readership. By screening submissions, we provide a space where readers can share intelligent and informed commentary that enhances the quality of our news and information. <\/p>\n While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderating decisions are subjective. We will make them as carefully and consistently as we can. Because of the volume of reader comments, we cannot review individual moderation decisions with readers. <\/p>\n We value thoughtful comments representing a range of views that make their point quickly and politely. We make an effort to protect discussions from repeated comments either by the same reader or different readers <\/p>\n We follow the same standards for taste as the daily newspaper. A few things we won't tolerate: personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity, profanity (including expletives and letters followed by dashes), commercial promotion, impersonations, incoherence, proselytizing and SHOUTING. Don't include URLs to Web sites. <\/p>\n We do not edit comments. They are either approved or deleted. We reserve the right to edit a comment that is quoted or excerpted in an article. In this case, we may fix spelling and punctuation. <\/p>\n We welcome strong opinions and criticism of our work, but we don't want comments to become bogged down with discussions of our policies and we will moderate accordingly. <\/p>\n We appreciate it when readers and people quoted in articles or blog posts point out errors of fact or emphasis and will investigate all assertions. But these suggestions should be sent via e-mail. To avoid distracting other readers, we won't publish comments that suggest a correction. Instead, corrections will be made in a blog post or in an article. <\/p>\n Man turns in $1M Powerball ticket in Greensburg <\/p>\n Westmoreland fugitive caught in McKees Rocks <\/p>\n Police charge mother and grandmother after overdosing on heroin while watching children <\/p>\n <\/p>\n More: Updated 5 hours ago Ron Barber had a passion for justice, a calm demeanor and a sharp intellect a combination that served him and his clients well as he successfully argued in Pennsylvania courts for the First Amendment rights of the media and individual civil liberties. Ron was the most gentle trial lawyer I have ever seen, said fellow partner David Strassburger, who worked with Mr Continue reading
\nPittsburgh attorney fought hard for First Amendment rights, individual civil liberties - Tribune-Review<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"