Marietta grieved a significant loss when attorney, John Moore, died November 2018, but his legacy lives on. His partners celebrated John's commitment and compassion for people and the practice of law by commissioning his portrait that hangs in the lobby of one of Marietta's premier law firms, Moore, Ingram, Johnson & Steele.
John began practicing law in Marietta in 1970 at Downey, Cleveland & Moore. On Jan. 1, 1984, he started his own full service law firm and continued to grow it to 100 lawyers and eight offices.
"With clients, he always did the best job he could to achieve the best result that he could. With lawyers, he treated them with professionalism and respect. With everyone, he felt that they should all be treated fairly and with respect," said his son Kevin Moore, a partner who has worked at the firm since 1996.
One of the most distinguished lawyers in Marietta, professionalism was at John's core.
"He was a true professional. He believed the practice of law called you to do something for the people and for the community. He treated it as a true profession," Moore said.
"In general, his treatment of people, whether they be clients, lawyers or judges or anyone he came in contact with, he treated them fairly and with respect. In turn, that earned him their respect," Moore said.
He said that having your father as your mentor can be challenging and rewarding at the same time.
"We benefited from having the right type of father/son relationship, not that ours was a better relationship than anyone else's. But we had the unique ability to tell each that we were sorry and be able to move past disagreements," Moore said. "The ability to say you're sorry, for him and for me, was a major factor in us working together for 20 years."
Administrative Partner, Bill Johnson thought of commissioning a portrait. Today, it hangs in the lobby to honor John's legacy and impact on the firm as founding member.
"(The portrait) would be something that clients who knew him could see and smile and remember. Those that did not could potentially ask about him. It was simply a way to honor him. As we come and go during the day, the portrait is in a highly visible location in the lobby, and we see it and try to remember what he instilled in us in the practice of law and treating other people fairly," Moore said.
Moore said John would have been touched by the portrait.
"(Dad) did not like to call attention to himself. He would tell me often that it was more important to get things done right than to take credit for it," Moore said.
"I think (Dad) would be very emotionally touched by the portrait and the fact that we were doing it. If you had to ask him would say, 'don't do that.' He wouldn't want that much attention drawn to himself. But at some point, you have to give him credit, and that's what we're trying to do," Moore said.
"(Our family) was deeply humbled that the partners wanted to remember and honor him that way," Moore said.
Photos courtesy to Marietta Talks
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