DANIEL A. ROBY

1941 - 2020

DANIEL A. ROBY, passed peacefully Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020, at home. Born in Anderson, Ind., on Aug. 16, 1941, Dan was the son of the late Virgil A. and Frances E. (Pouch) Roby. Attending elementary school in Chesterfield, Ind., he graduated from Anderson High School in 1959, Indiana University with honors in 1963, and Indiana University School of Law in 1966, thereby becoming Chesterfield's first college graduate as well as its first lawyer. Daniel moved to Fort Wayne in 1967 to join the firm of Wyss, Mochamer, Roby, Ryan and Myers, until 1983, when his partner, Thomas L. Ryan became Circuit Court Judge of Allen County. Dan then formed Roby and Hood Law Firm with G. Stanley Hood, becoming the first law practice in Fort Wayne devoted exclusively to civil litigation, including personal injury, wrongful death, product liability and professional malpractice, later joined by Thomas A. Manges to form Roby, Hood & Manges Law Firm. Dan was admitted to practice before the Indiana Supreme Court, the United States District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, the Seventh Circuit United States Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United States. His memberships included the Allen County and Indiana State Bar Associations, as well as the American Association for Justice and the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA). He served on the Board of Directors of ITLA beginning in 1980, and as its President from 1993 to 1994. While serving on ITLA's Legislative Committee he initiated legislative reform with the enactment of Indiana's Survival Act, Underinsured Motorists' Statute, and the Child Wrongful Death Act. His leadership resulted in evidentiary exclusions from comparative fault for non-use of seat belts and preservation of an unqualified right to jury trial under Indiana's mediation rules. He distinguished himself by receiving the Indiana Trial Lawyer of the Year Award in 1986 and its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004. He was also a member of the National Arbitration Forum, Indiana Association of Mediators, and American Arbitration Association Board of Arbitrators. As a civil mediator and arbitrator, he contributed to the drafting of Indiana's Alternative Dispute Resolution rules. He was recognized as a member of the College of Fellows of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association and was listed among Indiana's Super Lawyers. He received an A rating from his colleagues who chose him and his firm among America's preeminent lawyers. He was listed in "Who's Who in American Law," "Who's Who in the United States," and in "The Best Lawyers in America." He served on the Allen County Judicial Nominating Commission from 1983 to 1991, and the Third District Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission on Judicial Qualifications from 1997 to 1999. He qualified as a Board-Certified Civil Trial Specialist/Diplomat of the National Board of Trial Advocacy 1988 to1998, and was a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates Indiana Chapter beginning in 1992. He was also a former Master of the Benjamin Harrison Chapter American Inns of Court, Fort Wayne. Dan published numerous articles for the Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum and was often sought as a speaker for legal education programs throughout the state of Indiana. In addition to the practice of law, Dan served the American Heart Association in virtually every capacity and received its Distinguished Achievement Award in 1985. He served as President of the Allen County Heart Association, the Northeastern Indiana Heart Association and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Indiana Affiliate of the American Heart Association. For several years he served as Chairman of the Board and moderator for Faith Baptist Church and contributed as lay minister to its Towne House Retirement Center. He also encouraged and represented local physicians in establishing their state-of-the-art cardiology practice in Fort Wayne in 1978. The Heart Center became a center of excellence for the Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan region. In addition, he served on the Fort Wayne Medical Society and taught Roby obituary continued next column...