Best Lawyers Of All Time

So, who are they? Here's a quick look in the richest lawyers in the world, ranked from the lowest net value to the greatest. Please note that the people on this list are practicing lawyers or judges. There are loads of additional "lawyers" using a considerably higher net value, but they just have a law degree and no more use it.

Judge Joe Brown: $30 million

Famous for his day court show that ran for 15 years, Judge Joe Brown received his law degree from UCLA. After working as the initial African-American prosecutor in Memphis, TN, he started his own clinic prior to working as a criminal court judge in Shelby County, TN. While presiding over James Earl Ray's allure for the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., he caught the eye of TV producers. Most of his wealth was obtained through the show. In 2014, he ran for district attorney general in Shelby County, but lost to the incumbent.

Roy Black: $100 million

Still another civil and criminal defense lawyer, Roy Black, a graduate from the University of Miami, is the senior partner at Black, Srebnick, Kornspan, & Stumpf. For over 40 decades, he's represented high profile customers, including William Kennedy Smith (acquitted on rape charges), Albertson's, Inc., and Helio Castroneves. Known by most in the industry for getting "the best national reputation in Florida," he also acts as a legal advisor on "The Today Show" and "Good Morning America" and teaches advanced criminal evidence in the University of Miami.

Richard Scruggs: $1.7 billion

A 1976 graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law and also a prominent trial attorney, Richard Scruggs is famous for his love of asbestos and tobacco cases as well as the fact he won more than $1 billion in judgements against different businesses. He was also highly involved in 2000's Ritalin class action lawsuits, as well as the 2003 situation against Lehman Brothers for which he won a $51 million conclusion. However, in 2007, he was accused of judicial bribery. In 2008, he pled guilty and eventually served six years in federal prison. Today, in the age of 70, he's finished his sentence, and it has kept his large fortune.

William Lerach: $900 million

Although he had been disbarred in 2009 for his involvement in a kickback scheme, William Lerach had a lucrative career as a corporate lawyer with a specialty in private securities class action suits for more than 30 decades, which is how he amassed his considerable fortune. Nicknamed the "King of Pain" and often referred to as the most dreaded attorney in American during his heyday, Lerach, a University of Pittsburg School of Law graduate, holds the record for the largest sum ever recovered in a group of securities class action suits for its $7.12 billion decision he obtained against Enron.