Julian Derieux Clarkson

Julian Derieux Clarkson FORT MYERS - Julian Derieux Clarkson, 74, a retired attorney and former Tallahassee resident, died Wednesday, July 9, 2003. A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. EDT Tuesday at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 2635 Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Lawton Chiles Foundation, 1812 Riggins Road, Tallahassee, FL 32308. Fort Myers Memorial Gardens & Funeral Home (239-936-0555) is handling arrangements. Born in Coral Gables on March 12, 1929, Mr. Clarkson lived in Tallahassee from 1982 to 1995. He attended the University of Florida, where he majored in journalism and served as sports editor for the student newspaper, The Alligator. He was involved in several organizations including Florida Blue Key, where he served as president, Delta Tau Delta Fraternity, Sigma Delta Chi Professional Journalism Fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa. He graduated with high honors in 1950 and was named to the University's Hall of Fame. He briefly worked as a reporter for the Tampa Tribune before being called into the Army as a first lieutenant and sent to North Korea, where he served as a rifle platoon leader at the infamous Heartbreak Ridge Hill 851. He was awarded the Purple Heart, Combat Infantry Badge, Korean Service Ribbon and U.N. Service Medal. An injury he sustained in Korea resulted in a shattered ankle, from which he never fully recovered. Honorably discharged from service, he returned to the U.S. and enrolled in UF's College of Law. He earned an LL. B. with highest honors in 1955, graduating first in his class. He was a member of Phi Delta Phi International Legal Fraternity and the Order of the Coif. Mr. Clarkson had a long and distinguished career in appellate law. He entered private practice in Fort Myers with Henderson, Franklin, Starnes and Holt in 1955, where he later became a partner before starting his own practice in 1976. He joined Holland & Knight in 1977 as a senior partner in Tampa, and later in Tallahassee, until his retirement in 1993. He coached the office softball team for several years, earning the nickname "Coach" among the H&K staffers. At the peak of his career, Mr. Clarkson was widely recognized as the dean of the appellate bar in Florida, thanks to his unique ability to think, write and present oral arguments with brilliant clarity. He was a member of the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar; a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers; a member of the American Law Institute; vice chairman and chairman of the Florida Supreme Court Nominating Commission; a member of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers; the Eleventh Circuit Member Lawyers' Advisory Committee and a trustee of the Eleventh Circuit Historical Society. He was admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Fifth and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeals, the U.S. District Courts for the northern, central and southern districts of Florida, and The Florida Bar. He was named one of the best general trial lawyers in the U.S. by Town & Country magazine in 1995. Mr. Clarkson always remembered his alma mater and his beloved Gators and was known as a walking encyclopedia of Gator trivia. He served on the board of UF's athletic association from 1972 to 1974 and published two books about the history of UF football, including the UF-FSU clashes. The first, Let No Man Put Asunder, recounts the intense rivalry between UF and FSU, or the "boys" and "girls" teams, as they were known before both universities became coeducational in 1947. The second, Golden Era II: Ever So Close - A Florida Gator Reminisces, 1944-1994, occasioned travels to interview former team members and coaches - conversations which were highlights of his retirement years. The son of Julian Livingston Clarkson and Hazel Lamar Starnes, he is survived by two sons, James Lewis of Fort Myers and Julian Lamar of Sarasota; three daughters, Joanna Clarkson Dansby of Parkland; Melinda Clarkson Isley of Fort Myers and Shirley Lamar Clarkson of New York City; a brother, the Honorable Hugh E. Starnes of Fort Myers; three sisters, Hazel Clarkson Hough of St. Petersburg, and Marjorie Starnes and Suzanne Starnes Santamaria, both of Fort Myers; a stepbrother, Dr. Frank M. Bryan of Fort Myers; and four grandchildren. -