John J. Quinn

1932 - 2017

September 19, 1932 - March 26, 2017 John J. "Jack" Quinn, Jr., 84, a longtime resident of Beverly Hills, California, passed away peacefully on March 26, 2017. He was in the loving presence of his wife of 55 years, Joan Agajanian Quinn, his twin daughters, Amanda Quinn Olivar and Jennifer Quinn Gowey, and extended family, Manuel and Clara Perez. Jack was born in San Francisco in 1932 and moved to Los Angeles early in his youth. He attended Washington High School and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Southern California. Following graduation, Jack joined the United States Army and was stationed in Germany. Upon his return from the service, Jack completed his Juris Doctor at USC where he earned the Order of the Coif award for academic achievement. As a prominent and highly respected litigator for more than 50 years, Jack helped lead Kadison, Pfaelzer, Woodard, Quinn & Rossi and then formed Quinn, Kully & Morrow, which became the core of the Los Angeles office of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, an international law firm. Laurence Hutt, a colleague of many years, said of Jack that he always knew "how to be a lawyer and yet remain a decent human being." Mr. Hutt recalled that, "When someone had a victory in court, Jack was there to invite everyone involved for a celebratory drink after work; when he learned that someone had a bad day, Jack was similarly there with kind and encouraging words." Jack was a dedicated leader as the youngest president of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, first as Chair of the Junior Bar Association and later in the same role with the Senior Bar Association. He received the highest peer recognition in 1992, when he was awarded the Shattuck-Price Award for "outstanding dedication to the improvement of the legal profession and the administration of Justice." Jack was humbled when he was recognized, in 1994, with the distinguished Learned Hand Award. He also served as the Chair of the Senator Boxer Federal Judicial Selection Committee, overseeing the selection of nominees for federal judicial appointments. Jack was a friend to Los Angeles artists from the early days of the LA art movement in the 1960s through the present. It was most important to him that their rights were upheld and respected. Joan and Jack cherished longtime friendships with artists including Billy Al Bengston, Andy Warhol, Tony Berlant, David Hockney, Divine, Ed Moses, Frank Gehry, Lynda Benglis, Laddie John Dill, Ed Ruscha, Emmanuelle Khanh, Don Bachardy, Robert Graham and Dame Zandra Rhodes. A portion of their prolific California focused art collection is exhibited at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer. Jack is survived by his wife, Joan, his two daughters, Amanda Quinn Olivar (John) and Jennifer Quinn Gowey (Eric), his two granddaughters, Paloma and Georgia Joan, and Manuel and Clara Perez. Services will be private. For details contact honor.our.jack@gmail.com. Memorial donations will be received by the Armenian International Women's Association's (AIWA) Jack Quinn Fund (address: 1215 Flintridge Ave., La Cañada, CA 91011).