Shirley Sneve
ICT
A groundbreaking attorney from the Chickasaw Nation who became the first Native American to lead the powerful American Bar Association has died after a decades-long career fighting for diversity in the legal profession.
William “Bill” Paul died June 24, 2025, in Oklahoma City at age 94. Services have been set for July 24 at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Oklahoma City.
Paul leaves behind a legacy of promoting diversity. Crowe & Dunlevy, the law firm where he practiced for nearly six decades, described him as a legend to the firm and the state of Oklahoma.
Chickasaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby said Paul’s impact was “tremendous.”
“We join the family and friends of William Paul in grief over their lost loved one, as well as the celebration of his life,” Anoatubby said in a statement to ICT. “Although he is gone, the impact his life and work had on the legal profession, Oklahoma, the United States and beyond was and is tremendous. He was the first Native American to serve as president of the American Bar Association and has been honored internationally for his commitment to justice. His legacy and memory continue.”
As president of the American Bar Association from 1999-2000, Paul led the establishment of the organization’s Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund. He and his wife, Barbara, along with Crowe & Dunlevy, funded the initial $100,000 for the program, which still awards annual scholarships today. Crowe & Dunlevey also credits Paul for building its culture by establishing diversity scholarships at each of the three law schools in Oklahoma in his honor.
Mary Smith, who became the first Native American woman to serve as president of the American Bar Association in 2024-2025, said Paul was committed to diversity in the profession.
“Bill Paul lived a life of service to the community and the legal profession.” said Smith, Cherokee Nation, who also served as chief executive for the Indian Health Service. “His broad reach extended from his role as general counsel to his 59 years at Crowe & Dunlevy. As the first Native American president of the American Bar Association, he led by example and was committed to equal opportunity for all.”
Born on Nov. 30, 1930, Paul was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 2003, and, with U.S. Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, was inducted into the Chickasaw Hall of Fame in 2004.
Paul’s great-great-grandparents founded the city of Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, where he was born and graduated from high school in 1948. In addition, his great-grandfather was a senator in the Chickasaw Nation in the late 1800s and his father was president of the Oklahoma Senate.
He graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1952 and from its College of Law in 1956. That same year, he joined the oldest and largest Oklahoma law firm. Before graduation, he served in Korea in the U.S. Marine Corps.
He practiced law for 69 years – including his 59 years Crowe & Dunlevy and a decade as general counsel and senior vice president of Phillips Petroleum from 1985-1995. Paul was president of the Oklahoma County Bar Association in 1971, and president of the Oklahoma Bar Association in 1976. He was elected as a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 1978.
“Many will remember Bill as a fearless advocate for doing what is right,” according to a statement on the Crowe & Dunlevy website. “He was a champion of promoting diversity in the legal profession long before most took up the cause.”
A press release from the American Bar Associated said he was dedicated to making the world more equitable and fair, and pointed to his quote on the Oklahoma Hall of Fame website to sum up what lawyers should aspire to: “Courage is an essential quality without which the advocate is incomplete.”
