William D. Zabel, Lawyer Who Argued Loving v. Virginia, Dies at 89
William D. Zabel, a high-profile attorney known for both his work in landmark civil rights litigation and his representation of elite clients in complex matrimonial and financial disputes, died Tuesday at his home in Bedford, N.Y. He was 89. His wife, Deborah M. Miller, confirmed the cause of death was Parkinson’s disease.
Zabel’s career bridged two distinct legal worlds: the pursuit of fundamental constitutional rights and the high-stakes management of wealth for the global elite.
A Legacy in Civil Rights Litigation
Zabel considered his most significant contribution to be his role in *Loving v. Virginia*, the 1967 Supreme Court case that struck down state bans on interracial marriage. After being enlisted by Melvin Wulf, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union, Zabel served as the lead author of the amicus brief that argued the Virginia statute was unconstitutional because it explicitly used race as an element of a crime.
The Supreme Court’s unanimous decision declared that the freedom to marry resides with the individual and cannot be infringed by the state. This ruling later served as a vital precedent in federal court decisions that found same-sex marriage bans unconstitutional.
Zabel’s commitment to human rights extended throughout his career. He served as chairman of both the Immigrant Justice Corps and Human Rights First, an organization he helped establish. In 2016, he endowed a professorship in human rights at Harvard Law School, his alma mater.
Recovering Billions in the Madoff Fraud
Beyond his pro bono work, Zabel was a formidable force in private practice. In 2020, he represented the estate of Jeffry M. Picower, a longtime client and major investor with Bernard L. Madoff.
Following Madoff’s collapse, Zabel negotiated a civil-forfeiture recovery from the Picower estate that totaled approximately $2.2 billion. This settlement was a critical component of the more than $4 billion ultimately made available to victims of the Ponzi scheme. It was at the time the largest civil forfeiture in American history.
Matrimonial Law and Private Practice
Zabel’s firm, Schulte Roth & Zabel, which he co-founded in 1969, became a destination for the wealthy navigating complex financial and marital issues. His client list included George Soros, Rupert Murdoch, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and Jack Welch.
In his representation of Jane Beasley Welch during her divorce from the former General Electric CEO, Zabel famously used public filings to detail the vast executive perks provided to Mr. Welch, including corporate jet access and luxury real estate. The 2003 settlement resulted in payments to his client of approximately $180 million.
Zabel often balanced these high-fee engagements with his pro bono interests. “I have this whole pro bono civil rights and human rights history,” Zabel told *The Financial Times* in 2015. “But then I have my private practice,” which he characterized as “protecting the rich and allowing them to keep as much of their money as they can.”
Early Life and Career Path
Born in Omaha on Dec. 14, 1936, to parents who had immigrated from Russia and Romania, Zabel grew up in Sioux Falls, S.D. He graduated from Princeton University in 1958 and earned his law degree from Harvard in 1961.
His interest in justice was sparked early; he frequently cited a childhood experience where he saw a neighbor held accountable for poisoning his grandfather’s dog as an early lesson in the law’s capacity to serve the underdog. This interest was further cemented by trips to the Pine Ridge Indian reservation with family friend and U.S. Senator George McGovern.
In addition to his wife, Deborah, Zabel is survived by two sons from his first marriage to Eleanor Breitel, Richard and David; a stepson, Gregory Zabel; and seven grandchildren.