Duane E. Joseph ’53, Longtime Partner With Dorsey & Whitney, Dies at 91

Duane E. Joseph ’53, a partner with Minneapolis-based Dorsey & Whitney for more than 40 years and a steadfast Minnesota Law benefactor, passed away peacefully in Bonita Springs, Florida, on June 1. He was 91 and had been living with Parkinson’s disease for a number of years.

Joseph grew up in Minneapolis and was the first member of his family to attend college, earning both his undergraduate and J.D. degrees from the University of Minnesota, and working as a waiter from high school through law school to support his family and fund his education. During his long career at Dorsey, he specialized in real estate, banking, and business law, and he chaired the firm’s real estate department and management committee. For more than 50 years, Joseph was a member of the board of directors of Ryan Companies, the large-scale construction, development, and real estate management concern headquartered in the Twin Cities. He taught real estate law as an adjunct professor at the Law School, served on the boards of numerous businesses and nonprofit organizations, and co-founded Riverside Bank.

Beginning in 1980, Joseph and his late wife, Peggy, were consistent and generous donors to the Law School, making 43 gifts in all. As a member of the same AA group for more than 40 years, Joseph provided support and loyal friendship to many. Throughout his life, he had an avid interest in travel, world events, sports (he ran 12 marathons), the arts, and the latest technology and gadgets. He was known to family, friends, and colleagues as a keen observer and wit, a man of style, and a person of integrity and dignity who met his struggle with Parkinson’s with grace, fortitude, and an undiminished enthusiasm for life.

A celebration of life ceremony will be held for Joseph in Minneapolis at a date to be announced.