Best Lawyers Of All Time

So, who are they? Here's a fast look at the wealthiest attorneys in the entire world, ranked from the lowest net value to the highest. Please note that the individuals on this list are practicing lawyers or judges. There are loads of other "attorneys " using a considerably higher net worth, but they simply possess a law degree and no more use it.

Richard Scruggs: $1.7 billion

A 1976 graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law and a prominent trial lawyer, Richard Scruggs is famous for his love of tobacco and asbestos cases and the fact that he won more than $1 billion in judgements against various businesses. He was also highly involved in 2000's Ritalin class action suits, as well as the 2003 case against Lehman Brothers which he won a $51 million verdict. However, in 2007, he had been accused of judicial bribery. In 2008, he pled guilty and eventually served six years in federal prison. Today, at the age of 70, he has completed his sentence and has kept his large fortune, more interesting ideas to here.

David Boies: $20 million

Currently serving as the chairman of Boies, Schiller & Flexner, David Boies previously served as Chief Counsel for the US Senate. He graduated from Yale University in 1966 and almost instantly made a name for himself. He gathered his fortune by representing a number of large corporations, such as IBM, Napster, George Steinbrenner (owner of the NY Yankees), CBS, and the NBA Players Association throughout the 2011 NBA lockout. According to Fortune magazine, he is "corporate America's number 1 hired gun. "

Alan Dershowitz: $25 million

After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1962, Alan Dershowitz went right to work. By 1964he was a part of the Harvard Law School faculty and in 1967, he was made a full professor. (He retired in 2013.) While teaching courses, he was making a name for himself in the criminal law field. As a result of his standing as the "top lawyer of last resort," he has a bevy of high-profile clients, including Mike Tyson, Jim Baker, Leona Helmsley, O.J. Simpson, and Jeffrey Epstein. Additionally, he has written more than a dozen books. Everything collectively helped him collect his fortune

Judy Sheindlin: between $150 million and $250 million

Best known for being a no-nonsense TV judge, Judge Judy earns $47 million annually. A 1965 graduate of New York Law School, Judge Sheindlin was originally a corporate attorney, though she immediately grew tired of it and decide to be a family court prosecutor. Back in 1982, she was appointed as a criminal court judge, where she earned a reputation as a "tough" judge and presided over more than 20,000 cases. This, along with various novels she wrote, caught the attention of TV executives and finally led to her TV series. Additionally, she's the author of seven novels and has served as legal counsel on various TV shows.

Jane Wanjiru Michuki: $60 million

Educated at the Kenya School of Law and Warwick University, Jane Wanjiru Michuki is a managing partner at Kimani & Michuki Advocate, a corporate law firm in Nairobi, Kenya that represents Many of the largest corporations in Kenya, for example Equity Group Holdings Limited. In addition to her law career, she's the biggest female stockholder in the Nairobi Stock Exchange, which is where a fantastic piece of her net worth stems from.

Judge Joe Brown: $30 million

Famous for his daytime court series which ran for 15 decades, Judge Joe Brown received his law degree from UCLA. After serving as the initial African-American prosecutor at Memphis, TN, he opened his own practice before serving as a criminal court judge in Shelby County, TN. While presiding over James Earl Ray's appeal for its assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., he grabbed the attention of TV producers. The majority of his wealth was obtained through the show. In 2014, he ran for district attorney general in Shelby County, but lost to the incumbent.