In Memoriam: James Coyne King


James Coyne King

I’m sad to have two memorials in two days. On Saturday, James Coyne King, one of the founders of my firm, Murphy & King, passed away after an illness. Jim started his career in public service, first at the IRS and then for several years in the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department. He practiced in the field of business litigation in Boston for many years, but near the end of his career he felt called to public service again, mounting an improbable but heartfelt campaign for the United States Senate in 2012. I fondly remember long talks with Jim when I first arrived at the firm as a young lawyer. He took special pleasure in hazing the new associates by assigning them to undesirable cases, but along with the “dogs” came a lot of wisdom from Jim’s many years of experience. I will miss him, as will everyone who knew him. And our firm, which he helped to found and then to build, will bear his name as a living memorial for many years to come—I think Jim would be especially proud of that.


2 responses to “In Memoriam: James Coyne King”

  1. Hugh R Taylor

    Ted:

    I think we have not met, but I am Jim King’s and Murphy & King’s second longest standing client (1982), and as Jim would remind me constantly one of his smallest.

    I am very pleased to hear that his name will remain in the firm’s name. A great tribute. Well done.

    If eulogies and other speeches are recorded, I would love a copy as I was not able to make the service.

    Hugh R Taylor

    1. Hugh, thank you for the remembrance of Jim! It means a lot. I am not sure if the eulogy was recorded, but I will ask.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Thank you for commenting! By submitting a comment, you agree that we can retain your name, your email address, your IP address, and the text of your comment, in order to publish your name and comment on Letters Blogatory, to allow our antispam software to operate, and to ensure compliance with our rules against impersonating other commenters.