A Fierce Champion for Justice

By Loán C. Lake, Photo by P. A. Greene

Baltimore native Judge William H. “Billy” Murphy, Jr. loves speaking truth to power. He hails from an extensive line of successful entrepreneurs and brave community leaders, including his great-grandfather John H. Murphy, Sr., founder of the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper. Murphy, who grew up in Cherry Hill, is the senior partner of the Baltimore-based law firm Murphy Falcon & Murphy launched by his father, retired Maryland District Court Judge William H. Murphy, Sr., in 1948.  

Law was not the original plan. Armed with an electrical engineering degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1965, Murphy’s career began at the Glenn L. Martin Company, a leading U.S. aerospace firm. After losing a major military contract, Murphy’s boss told him that he had been sold to the Lockheed Corporation in Marietta, Georgia, to which he responded, “I thought only baseball players or slaves could be sold.” Murphy’s boss said he had never seen him in uniform. “In that moment, I decided that I never wanted to work for corporate America again and enrolled at the University of Maryland School of Law in 1966.  

In law school, Murphy founded the country’s first chapter of the Black American Law Students Association (BALSA) and was a member of the Maryland Law Review. He graduated in 1969 and clerked for Chief Judge Robert Murphy of the Court of Appeals. In 1970, Murphy and LeRoy Carroll joined William H. Murphy, Sr. to expand the family firm.  

Murphy Jr. gained popularity as a top trial lawyer, representing clients such as the Black Panther Party and touting a ninety-one percent win-rate during his first twenty-five years of practice. He was attracted to criminal law in the aftermath of the uprising following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Murphy’s legal prowess caught the attention of corporate America after he successfully represented fight promoter Don King in his mail and wire fraud trial in New York. He later defended corporate giants such as Microsoft and HR Block in billion-dollar lawsuits and has been hired by high profile individuals in politics, entertainment, and other industries.  

Conversely, Murphy has also secured massive verdicts and settlements in groundbreaking cases against corporate giants like Equifax, First Union Bank, Ernst & Young, and Facebook. Additionally, he has notably won landmark police brutality cases, delivering justice for the families of Freddie Gray in Baltimore City and William Green in Prince George’s County. “My family has a long history of service, and it’s in my DNA to help people.” he said.  

Creativity, relentless preparation, and boldness define Murphy’s career, qualities he attributes to his background as a jazz drummer. “I’m serious about my craft and have performed with world-class musicians here and abroad. Great trial lawyers, like the jazz greats, intensively prepare to improvise and are fearless performers. My jazz background gave me a tremendous advantage in the courtroom,” Murphy said.  

Murphy has also helped shape Maryland politics as an elected judge on the Circuit Court For Baltimore City (1980), a mayoral candidate (1983), and as an annual legislative witness before the state legislature. 

“The good Lord blessed me when he put me into the family of Bill and Madeline Murphy. Everything that I’ve ever done that has been worthwhile came from them. I’ll take full responsibility for the rest of it,” Murphy said.