NYU Law School Alumnus Leonard M. Weintraub Gives $1 Million In Scholarships To His Alma Mater

Distinguished criminal attorneyand New York University School of Law alumnus Leonard M. Weintraub, (class of '45), recently gave $1 million to his alma mater. The gift will endow "The Leonard M. Weintraub Scholarship Fund," which will provide merit scholarships in perpetuity to deserving NYU law students.

Mr. Weintraub, the son of Jewish immigrants, was born and raised in Manhattan. His passion for the law, penchant for straight-talk and strong desire to help young people is well known

"When I started out it was a different world," he says. "Many of the big law firms wouldn't employ Jews, women or African-Americans." But, Weintraub says, he was one of the lucky ones. Upon graduation, he landed a job with Hartman, Sheridan & Tekulasky. It was there that he honed his courtroom skills working with Burton B. Turkus, the legendary "Murder Inc." prosecutor.

"At a critical moment in my career, I had a mentor. For this reason, I always try to help young lawyers." For some 20 years, he has served as a member of the Committee on Character and Fitness of the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court, First Department. There he diligently screens and admits students to the bar-some 3,000 to date.

As a young man, Weintraub had a semi-pro baseball career using the moniker Jo Jo Faber. He also played varsity baseball on NYU's team. When a back injury sidelined his athletic career, he chose, at his mother's insistence, the profession of law. It took him three years to get his undergraduate degree from what was then the School of Commerce, and only two years to finish law school.

"Most people do it in seven years," he says, his eyes twinkling with pride. "I did it in only five years."

06/08/99