Reeder Rodman Fox
February 13, 2022
Reeder Rodman Fox, of Ardmore, PA, died peacefully in his sleep surrounded by his loving family on February 13, 2022.
Born in Easton, PA on October 18, 1934 to Louis Rodman Fox and Mary Catherine Cannon Fox, Reeder was the younger brother of Maryan Gainor (Richard Chapin). Reeder grew up in Easton attending the Francis A. March Elementary School and ultimately The Lawrenceville School (Class of 1952), Yale University (1956) and Harvard Law School (1959). Reeder began working at Duane Morris in 1959, where he remained for 56 years until his retirement in 2015.
At Duane Morris, Reeder was a versatile trial lawyer with a wide area of practice spanning all of commercial and corporate litigation, but with a specialization, and national reputation in the representation of architects, professional engineers and other design professionals, as well as construction companies. In particular, he represented many of the leading design firms in Philadelphia and in doing so he had a major impact on the development and skyline of Center City Philadelphia, as his clients were instrumental in the wave of new Center City office towers during the late 1960’s and the 1970’s.
Reeder was also the lead lawyer for the design professionals in major construction defect cases, such as the Hartford Civic Center roof collapse (1978) and the Hyatt Regency skywalk collapse (1981) in Kansas City. Reeder also played a lead role for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the landmark 46 state Attorneys General v. tobacco manufacturers Master Settlement Agreement (1998). Reeder was also extremely active over the years in the International Association of Defense Counsel, and for many years headed the IADC Construction Law and Litigation Committee.
Reeder was part of a distinguished legal family with a long history in Northampton County, Pennsylvania which included his grandfather, Justice Edward John Fox, who joined the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1918. Reeder is a direct descendant of Andrew Horatio Reeder, who was the first Governor of the Kansas Territory (1854), a highly regarded anti-slavery stalwart and himself a lawyer in Easton and graduate of The Lawrenceville School (1825), and for whom Reeder’s home street, Reeder Street in Easton is named.
Reeder had many outside interests, but especially loved attending his children’s athletic events. He also was at home on the road on travels with his family and he found time for golf and his voracious reading on all topics. Reeder was a Trustee of The Lawrenceville School and he also served the role as the “in-house” photographer for wife Marion, a well-known travel writer and author.
Reeder leaves behind his loving wife of 59 years, Marion Laffey Fox, his 3 children; Rodman (Julie), Drew and Vanessa (Samuel Halpert), and his 9 grandchildren.
A Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday March 5th, 11:00 AM at St. John Vianney Church, 350 Conshohocken State Rd., Gladwyne, PA. Interment is private.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Reeder R. Fox ‘52 Fund at The Lawrenceville School; Box 6125, Lawrenceville, NJ, 08648.