Paul Vishny, 89, born in 1931, in Chicago Illinois, died April 22, 2020 of Covid-19. Loving husband of the late Michele Kopstein Vishny, son of the late Abraham and Hannah (nee Permuth)Vishny, father of Deborah S. Vishny, Renana A. Friedman and Miriam L. (Mark A H Cohen) Vishny; grandfather of Danielle and Jonathan Cohen, Hana Yamahiro and Benjamin Friedman; brother of the late Rosamund Sussman. Paul was a nationally and internationally known lawyer whose practice began with his father-in-law, Max Kopstein, he later was a partner at D’Ancona & Pflaum and at Seyfarth & Shaw, where he ended his career. His expertise in international business transactions was well known and led him to represent diverse clients, trade associations and interests in numerous countries around the globe. His business travels led him to work in France, Russia, Japan, Indonesia, Germany, Italy, Israel, and other nations. He was fluent in Hebrew and also spoke several other languages, including French and Yiddish. He was ordained as a Rabbi in 1957 by the Hebrew Theological College, Chicago Illinois, after concurrently attending rabbinical school and law school. One of his proudest moments was scoring # 1 when taking the Illinois State Bar after being told by the Dean of his law school that he could not possibly pass law school and the bar since he was also studying to be a Rabbi. He was the author of two well known legal treatises, The Guide to International Commerce Law, International Trade for the Nonspecialist, and his personal labor of love, The Siddur Companion. He was an expert in the legal aspects of telecommunications, served as the U.S. State Department’s representative to the board of the Center for Telecommunications and Development, Geneva, Switzerland in the 1980’s and performed pro bono work for SatelLife in the nation of Uganda. Most of all he loved fine wine, travel, his large Judaic library and was always proud of his children and grandchildren.
Due to Covid-19, only immediate family will be present at his graveside service on Monday, April 27th at 12:00 noon at Westlawn Cemetery in Norridge Illinois. The funeral will be live streamed on Facebook by Weinstein & Piser Funeral Home of Wilmette, Illinois, 847-256-5700. A Zoom Shiva memorial will be held on Monday, April 27 at 7:00 p.m EDT; contact funeral home for further information. Contributions may be made to: Vinney Hospice of Montefiore, 1 David N. Myers Parkway, Beachwood OH 44122 or the Alzheimer’s Association.
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