[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 19061-19062]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING WILLIAM L. UTSEY

 Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, today I pay tribute to William 
Utsey, who passed away on July 18, 2009. A highly successful attorney, 
William Utsey was a personal friend and along, with his friends and 
family, I mourn his passing.
  William was born on October 28, 1939, in Gilbertown, AL. He graduated 
from the University of Southern Mississippi in 1962 and received his 
J.D. from the University of Alabama School of Law. In 1965, William was 
admitted to the Alabama State Bar. He began his legal career serving as 
a clerk and later as an attorney with the firm of Clement, Rosen, 
Hubbard, and Waldrop in Tuscaloosa.
  After practicing law for 5 years in Huntsville, William returned to 
his home in Choctaw County to embark as a solo practitioner. At the 
time of his death, William was the senior partner of Utsey and Utsey 
where he practiced with his son. William's fondness of the

[[Page 19062]]

legal profession extended well past his private practice. He served as 
president of the Choctaw County Bar Association and the Alabama 
Association for Justice. In addition, William held memberships to the 
Alabama State Bar Association, the First Judicial Circuit Bar 
Association, and the Alabama Trial Lawyers Association.
  Most people in west Alabama know William for his many contributions 
to the Democratic Party in west Alabama. For 20 years, William served 
as chairman of the Choctaw County Democratic Executive Committee. I 
knew William to be honest, hard-working, and committed to his family 
and to the people of Choctaw County.
  William is loved and will be missed by his wife Treobye Britton 
Utsey; his sons William Jacob Utsey and John Jefferson Utsey; his 
daughter Elizabeth Utsey Sadler; and nine grandchildren. I ask the 
entire Senate to join me in recognizing and honoring the life of 
William Utsey.

                          ____________________