Edward I. Masterman

Edward I. Masterman, a Boston trial lawyer who became a leading figure in eminent domain and real estate litigation, died of natural causes on Sunday in Boston. He was 100. He enjoyed a long and remarkable life and 73 years of marriage to his wife Sydell.

Ed was born in Boston to Jake and Anne Masterman, one of six children. He served in the Army during World War II and attended Suffolk University and Suffolk University Law School on the G.I. Bill, earning his law degree in 1950. Suffolk awarded him an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 1990.

He founded the firm that became Masterman, Culbert & Tully, a boutique real estate and corporate practice. As Boston expanded and public authorities took private property for highways, transit and urban renewal, Ed Masterman built a reputation as one of the bar's dominant and sought after litigators in eminent domain.

He served as president of the Boston Bar Association and was elected a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.

Edward’s civic life ran nearly as long as his legal one. He joined the Boston University Board of Trustees in 1982 and served as chairman of its Trustee Development Committee from 1990 to 2002, later becoming a Trustee Emeritus. On Nov. 12, 2002, the university dedicated the Edward I. and Sydell Masterman Hall, La Maison Française, at 153 Bay State Road.

At his law school, he and Sydell endowed the Masterman Institute and Speaker Series on the First Amendment and the Fourth Estate. The series has drawn journalists, judges and media lawyers to Suffolk for decades.

Edward Masterman served as Austria's Honorary Consul General in Boston for 18 years, resigning in 1986 in protest over political developments in that country. He also served as a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army, was on the Board of Directors of the Boston Foundation, was active in the New England Legal Foundation, Jewish Big Brother, the New Boston Committee, and numerous other legal, civic, and charitable organizations.

Within his family, Ed was an inveterate storyteller, and held the attention of children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren with accounts of a long life. In addition to his wife Sydell, he is survived his sister Rochelle Weil, by three children and their spouses: James Masterman and his wife, Dr. Andrea Masterman; Beth Masterman and her husband, Martin Pentz; and Gwenn Masterman Snider and her husband, Mark; nine grandchildren; and 15 great-grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held at Temple Israel of Boston, 477 Longwood Ave, Boston (parking available on the Riverway), on Wednesday, September 23, at 11:00 am, followed by the interment at Sharon Memorial Park, 40 Dedham Street, Sharon. Please call Levine Chapels for shiva details. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Boston Foundation at www.tbf.org or the Combined Jewish Philanthropies at cjp.org .

Livestream Link: https://tinyurl.com/EdwardMasterman