Mark Levy, Kilpatrick Stockton Lawyer, Found Dead In Apparent Suicide

WASHINGTON — An attorney who served in the Clinton administration was found dead Thursday in an apparent suicide at his Washington law office.

Kilpatrick Stockton LLP, an Atlanta-based firm, confirmed in a statement that attorney Mark Levy had died.

"Mark Levy was well known and highly respected for his successful appearances before the Supreme Court of the United States," said Bill Dorris, the firm's co-managing partner.

Levy was a deputy assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice between 1993 and 1995 and served five years in the Solicitor General's office.

D.C. Police spokeswoman Helen Andrews said officers were called to an office building where the firm is located to investigate a shooting Thursday morning. Investigators believe it was a suicide.

Levy attended Yale University's law school with former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and more recently worked on fundraising for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, said Dennis Gingold, an attorney who was working with Levy on a case.

"I don't know anyone who isn't shocked by what just happened," Gingold said. "He was a good guy. He really was ... and professionally, he was first class."

During his career, Levy had argued 16 cases before the Supreme Court. At Kilpatrick Stockton, he served as counsel and chair of the firm's Supreme Court and appellate advocacy practice. Levy, who was married and has two children, lived in Bethesda, Md.

The firm had announced this week that 24 lawyers would be laid off. Officials at Kilpatrick Stockton did not respond to telephone and e-mail inquiries Thursday as to whether Levy had been laid off.

The death comes after the chief financial officer of mortgage giant Freddie Mac killed himself last week. David Kellermann was found dead April 22 in the basement of his northern Virginia home. Colleagues had noticed he was under stress and had suggested he take time off.

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Associated Press Writers Kamala Lane contributed to this report.

Comments

[JacobTheCapsFan]

I live right next door to the Levys, they have been great neighbors and I feel so bad for them and their whole family. I've lived next door to them for 15 years and they have been so kind and warm-hearted. This tragedy upsets my family deeply, along with the whole community. I am so sorry. Mark was a great guy.

[ron27]

I knew Mark and Judi Levy. I've met a lot of jerks living in DC but Mark was one of the nicest guys and I really mean that. He was nice to me in settings where others in his position were rude or unfriendly. I've never known anyone who committed suicide before. It really seems strange and it's also very sad. Judi is also a nice person and I'm sure she's just shocked and full of unfathomable grief. I'm not sure exactly sure what all the lessons are here but it seems that making the most out of the life you have is really, really important.

[stargazer13]

sounds fishy to me

much love to his family

[inorbit]

These suicides are so sad. My dad was unemployed for several years and he certainly did not kill himself or his family. He survived - got another job eventually - and lived to age 85.

People need to get a grip and have some perspective on life.

[blueskybigstar]

Suicides are rare.

[ebanks84]

Since I believe in FACTS only, I trust the family thoroughly investigates his death, obtain their own version of the cause of death and proceed accordingly.

I say that only because suicides in Washington have been very shady. I wouldn't believe anything a Washington coroner concludes, especially one that says 5 shots to the body is suicide. I haven't heard of any d e a d people continually k i l l i n g themselves after they were already d e a d. Has anybody else?

My sincere condolences to his family.

[blueskybigstar]

Well said. However, I fear that many families are intimidated and given offers of money they can't refuse. A week or two before Vince, his wife said that he came home with a trunk so filled with cash that it was hard to shut it. She soon stopped making any suggestions.

[ebanks84]

I can understand why families might be too scared to question the events surrounding deaths sometimes. But money IS the root of all evil.

[ebanks84]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2589286

[Meesterclean]

Extremely interesting.

[constabull]

Yea, law can be high stress but so can other professions. Everyone is stressed out. This guy was in the game long enough and successfully enough that it would be foolish to believe that "the stress of the job" did him in. You NEVER know what's going with someone in their private life and thoughts.

[blueskybigstar]

I don't trust this at all. This article states that he was about to be laid off, a lawyer who has argued cases for the Supreme Court six times? For some reason I knew this lead back to Arkansas or Texas.

[Teritt]

It doesn't matter how successful you've been in the past, nor how overworked you are, you don't know what thoughts will go through your head when you get laid off. If your job was a major part of your life, and you realize your previous accomplishments don't mean squat to your employer, all kinds of insecurities pop up and you wonder what good are you actually, why did you do so much, what else is there, what did you do wrong, etc etc etc. Don't be a conspiracy theorist when so many Americans are going through this, this poor guy just had a higher profile and he at least deserved a HuffPost piece..

[ebanks84]

There ARE no conspiracy theories that have not eventually been proven to be conspiracy FACTS. And if you don't wake up and smell the coffee, you will never accept the truth. Try Googling SUICIDES IN WASHINGTON over the years and see what you come up with. When a person is shot 5 times and coroner concludes it to be a SUICIDE, who you figure the liar to be?

[blueskybigstar]

How many campaign managers of the Clintons have met unexpected and rare ends? Research it! Too many.

[dashboard]

I am afraid these kinds of stories will be more numerous than the flu outbreak..­..tragic and sad.

[robinhood1]

According to zimbio.com, Mr. Levy was recently laid off from his law firm. I guess he won't be the last overachiever to bite the dust during this depression. It is unfortunate that he didn't have the courage to simply walk away from his demanding career and downsize his life.

[susanra]

I would suggest that I doubt it was just an inability to 'downsize' his life, but instead a overwhelming feeling of humiliation and personal rejection along with a feeling of failure and a lack of measuring up to the requirements of his career. To be chosen as one of 24 to be let go would initially send one into an overwhelming feeling of shock and humiliation.

[rich misty]

Bush did not just severely depress the economy.

[falco]

Oh, and I bet with those credentials he would have been standing in the bread line! Wake up!

[TchoupitoulasCanal]

Hey....as a law student who will be looking for work soon all I can say is (1) It's not pretty, and (2) I'm glad I have my nursing degree to fall back on.

Law is one of those careers that is "retracting" for good reason. I know...it'­s illegal for us law types to admit that the profession is overpaid, but it really is in many aspects.

Trust me, it's not "Boston Legal" at all....AND I still have $136,000 in student loans that I get to pay back! Joy!

[Carolab]

Seriously. http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/1998/06/08/1998-06-08_starr_seeks_notes_of_foster_.html

[aercolini]

Lawyers have the highest suicide rate outside of dentists. It's an insanely high pressure proffession. I think they top the charts in all other stress indicators, especially alcoholism. Still, with a ciriculum vitae like this guy, he had no need to worry about money or his carreer, I mean he argued 16 times before the Supreme Court. It's a huge waste.

[RJII]

This is scary. If these top notch wealthy guys are killing themselves, what pressures are the newly unemployed poor and once middle class experiencing.
Jobs seem to becoming more and more scarce

[Cinnamonape]

Apparently he was one of those that the firm had just let go.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/30/AR2009043003115.html?hpid=moreheadlines

[nowarpleez]

What is going on with these highly educated, successful guys in D.C. ? This is very strange. Are they certain these deaths are suicide?

[blueskybigstar]

Someone is certain as to how they want things to appear.