In bankruptcy cases, clients often lean heavily on their lawyers because they are seen as the last hope to prevent financial ruin.
Frank Scroggins, who specialized in bankruptcy law for nearly 40 years, accepted and relished that role, said J. Robert Williamson, a former law partner.
"The way he approached the practice was truly as a counselor," he said. "He was very skilled, not only in protecting the clients' interest, but also in making them feel that not all was lost. He particularly seemed to like cases where he represented the underdog."
Five weeks ago, Frank William Scroggins of Buckhead was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. He died on Thursday from complications of the disease at Atlanta Hospice. He was 77. A funeral was held Sunday and a private burial will be held today Monday at Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta. H.M. Patterson & Son, Spring Hill Chapel, is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Scroggins attended Virginia Military Institute from 1950 to 1953. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Alabama, then entered that college's School of Dentistry. He realized medicine wasn't the profession for him after three years of dental school.
So in 1957, he loaded up his car and drove to Emory University, where he persuaded the dean of the law school to admit him. In 1959, he graduated at the top of his class.
"He was always so grateful to Emory for giving him the chance to [enroll]," said Deborah Scroggins, a daughter who lives in Barnstable, Mass. "He was always a generous donor and served on the law school's advisory board many years."
In Atlanta, Mr. Scroggins worked in general practice before becoming a founding member of firms that included Hicks, Eubanks and Scroggins; Scroggins and Brizendine; and most recently Scroggins and Williamson. He retired in 2002.
In his career, he mentored numerous Atlanta attorneys, among them former partner Robert Brizendine, currently a bankruptcy judge for the U.S. Northern District.
"He was not only a mentor, but almost like a father and a brother who accepted me as a member of his family," the judge said. "He had fun practicing law and I had fun practicing it with him. "
Said Mr. Williamson: "I learned so much from having him as a sounding board. He did it in a way that wasn't pushy or overbearing. You learned by watching and by example."
Mr. Scroggins was elected chair of the bankruptcy section of the State Bar of Georgia. He joined the Old Warhorse Lawyers Club of Atlanta. The civil rights supporter was also an officer of the Lawyers Club of Atlanta and the Young Democrats of Fulton County.
"He loved bankruptcy law because he felt like his clients were honorable, hardworking people who had gotten in bad situations," his daughter said. "And he met so many extraordinary people."
Survivors in addition to his daughter include Gloria Baker Scroggins, his wife of 49 years; a son, Frank William Scroggins Jr. of West Palm Beach, Fla.; a brother, Michael Scroggins of Destin, Fla.; and three grandchildren.
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