James E. Roberts

Born in Birmingham, Alabama, he attended West End High School and was a state level competitive wrestler. He later attended Howard College completing his Bachelor of Science in 1964 and his Doctor of Jurisprudence from Cumberland School of Law in 1968. He was admitted to the Alabama Bar and certified by the Internal Revenue Service in Estate and Gift Tax law in 1969. Four years later he joined the private firm of Bainbridge and Mims before becoming a named partner at Wheeler, Christian and Roberts. He later branched out with his own private practice and recently received his 50 year pin from the Alabama Bar Association.

He is survived by his wife, Bonnie Parks Roberts, two daughters Sarah Elizabeth Roberts Clayton (Mark) and Sarah Margaret Roberts Lacey. He has four grandchildren, Jessica Clayton, Brad Clayton, Braxton Lacey and Preston Lacey. His older brother, Howard Harry Roberts Jr (Charlotte) who steered him into the law and to whom he was always grateful. Jim was committed to family and loved his nephews, cousins and their families as his own.

He was preceded in death by his father, Howard Harry Roberts, Sr, his mother Pauline Elizabeth Henderson, Joanne Bowman, a cousin who was raised as a sister, and his beloved pets: Baby, Missy and Eddie.

He practiced law for over 50 years specializing in tax and estate preparations. He achieved the great honor of presenting before the Supreme Court of the United States of America in 1973. Over the course of his career he handled the estate planning of many prominent residents of Birmingham and made lifelong friends in the process. Other notable cases in his career include the representation of Harry Hoover in his 1980 fight for a fair settlement as the Federal Government, under its powers of eminent domain threatened to take control of the historic Sauta Caves in Jackson County, Alabama for significantly less than he had invested in the preservation of the cave. He represented the children of Jeanne S. Kelly, after her disappearance on the Flying Dutchman in 1976 advocating for her to be declared dead after seven years in 1981. He also handled an international maritime wrongful death suit on behalf of the families of two Honduran fishermen in the 1980’s after learning of their plight from their sister who was a missionary raising support in Alabama for their ministry.

He served as legal counsel, honorary director, and 2011 Hall of Fame Honoree for the International Association of Ice Cream Distributors and Vendor for most of his career and was to be honored at their October Convention for his contributions.

He served as legal consultant for World Taekwondo, the international federation governing the sport of taekwondo, and attended, in his official capacity, the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.

He obtained his pilot’s license in 1980 and enjoyed not only flying his own airplanes but also built an amphibious Ultralight with his good friend Bobby Thacker.

In his final days he talked about how his life was radically changed in his early 20’s when he accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior. He believed that the date of his death was as certain as the date of his birth and that it was his responsibility to use his time wisely and lead others to do the same in sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. He was an elder of the Acton Memorial Church and involved in its name change to Altadena Valley Presbyterian Church in efforts to make it more welcoming to the growing “over the mountain” community. In the early 1980’s he built a house especially dedicated to ministry and missions. He was an avid supporter of Samaritans Purse and other missionary efforts around the world.

The family gathered for a graveside service on Wednesday, September 8, 2021 at Southern Heritage Cemetery and a Celebration of Life Service will be held on Friday September 10, 2021 at 2pm. Double Oak Community Church, Mt Laurel Campus (115 Olmsted Street, Birmingham, AL 35242).

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.southernheritagefunerals.com for the Roberts family.