Robert N. Sayler

SAYLER

ROBERT N. SAYLER

Robert N. Sayler died in Charlottesville, VA on September 7, 2022 at the age of 82. Bob was born and raised in Kansas City where at age 14 he met the love of his life Marty and is survived by her after 60 years of marriage.



Bob was a Kansas high school debate champion before venturing west to his beloved Stanford University for college. Bob continued his successful debating career at Stanford and was president of the student body. From Stanford he attended Harvard Law School, and in 1965 he joined the law firm of Covington & Burling in Washington, DC. As a 31-year-old associate, Bob argued pro bono before the US Supreme Court, advocating for the rights of individuals facing termination of disability benefit payments. Bob practiced at the firm as a partner until 2007 and as senior counsel thereafter, serving terms as head of the firm's litigation department and as a member of its management committee. He achieved national prominence as a trial lawyer, chaired the litigation section of the American Bar Association, served as a member of the ABA's select committee that evaluates federal judicial nominees, served as president of the board of the Legal Aid Society in Washington, and was a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.



In 2002, Bob and Marty moved to Charlottesville, VA where Bob was a professor at the University of Virginia Law School, teaching rhetoric and trial advocacy. Bob reveled in his role helping budding lawyers strengthen their speaking skills, and he co-authored three editions of the book "Tongue-Tied America: Reviving the Art of Verbal Persuasion."



Bob found great joy, camaraderie, and spirited competition in all manner of recreational pursuits each summer for over 50 years in Boothbay Harbor, ME. The last 43 of those were spent on Mouse Island where he intrepidly sought to be crowned Mouse Island's Intergalactic Grand Champion of tennis, croquet, shuffleboard, and myriad other important disciplines.



Bob was an enthusiastic fan of UVA and Washington, DC sports teams, an avid golfer, a mentor to many, and blessed with a strong sense of humor to the very end.



In addition to his wife, Bob is survived by his brother Bill Sayler of Kansas City; his daughter Chris and her husband Dave Fairris of Taos, NM and Pasadena, CA; and his son Ben and wife Betsy of Spearfish, SD. He is also survived by four beloved grandsons, Zak and Matt Fairris and Jay and Will Sayler, and by five nieces and nephews.



Contributions in Bob's memory may be made to St. Paul's Memorial Church at the University of Virginia where he served on the vestry and was a longstanding member of the parish. A celebration of life will be held at St. Paul's on Saturday, October 1 at 2 p.m., 1701 University Avenue, Charlottesville, VA 22903.