Walter R. Milbourne ’55

Walt died Nov. 28, 2022. He was a career lawyer with a strong lifelong interest in tennis, chess, and ping-pong, 

Walt was born Aug. 27, 1933, in Philadelphia and attended DeVilbiss High School in Toledo, Ohio. There he was active in student government, publications, and the Latin Club. At Princeton, he joined Campus Club and majored in the School of Public and International Affairs. He earned letters in freshman and varsity tennis, where he was seeded No. 1, and played IAA table tennis and basketball. Walt was chairman of the Clio Party and a member of the Whig-Clio government council and the senior advisory board of the SPIA. He was also a member of the freshman and varsity debate panels. His senior-year roommates were Ed Eyring, Richard Murphy, and Peter Garrett.

After graduation from Harvard Law School, Walt practiced law in Philadelphia, concentrating on litigation. In 2001, he became of counsel to his firm and was active in alternative dispute resolution, which he much enjoyed. He posted a national top-20 placement in chess and a national ranking in ping-pong. In tennis, he was active from the age of 8 to 80, and his trophy case was bulging.

Walt was nationally recognized as an insurance and reinsurance defense litigator and was a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He was an executive committee member of the International Association of Defense Counsel.

He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Sue; sons Gregory and Rob; daughters Karen and Margaret; and 10 grandchildren.